Cape Of Our Hero
by Cayla5
Summary: She is Rogue- "The Untouchable," destined to live a life of fear that she'll hurt those close to her. Solution? Putting up boundaries between her and the rest of her peers. What happens when the infamous Remy LeBeau tries to take down those protective, overbearing walls? Romy all the way, maybe (most likely) other couples to come as well.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Hey all! I'm not necessarily new to the site, but this is my first story, so please take it easy on me? I'm pretty sure I'm going to have some grammar and spelling issues with this one because of the dialect and what not, so bear with me :) Also, I love constructive criticism for those of you who are brave enough to PM or send out a review. Either way, enjoy the story and I strongly urge you all to listen to the song "Cape of our Hero" by Volbeat. Surely, it'll kind of depict where I'm going with this story.

Disclaimer: I do not own X-Men Evolution or any of the following characters that may be featured in the Marvel Universe

Chapter 1: A Moment Forever

Rogue POV

"Again? Really?" I asked with annoyance clearly laced in my voice.

"Yes, _again_. We do it 'til we beat our record time," Scott Summers said.

Sure, Cyclops is a good leader during actual battle, but during danger room sessions? Not so much. Sometimes I think he tries to impress Logan a little too much.

"Whah are ya putting us through so much trainin'?!" I asked, outraged. "Evah since we destroyed Apocalypse, there hasn't been any threat from the Brotherhood and almost nothin' from the Acolytes! Whah do you keep pushin' us and pushing' us and pushin' us when there's hardly any reason tah? Did ya evah consider that we maht, oh I dunno, wanna break?!"

With each word, I seemed to have gotten louder and louder, my southern drawl increasing with each word, considering Scott and I now had an audience; however no one took sides in fear of both mine and Scott's tempers.

It seemed as if Scott had noticed the audience too, because he lowered his voice, saying, "Yes. Apocalypse is gone. Sure, the Brotherhood and Acolytes haven't shown much of a threat lately, but what's gonna happen when they do? Hell, what happens when something else comes up?"

Looking around, I noticed all the worried downcast glances of my fellow teammates. _I've put up with this so far, what's another hour?_ "Fahne. We'll do the stupid run threw again," I said with resignation in my voice.

"Thank you, Rogue. That's all I wanted to hear," he said.

The simulation started up again. This time, however, it was a new setting. Unlike the usual New York City landscape, it looked more like a small logging town. There were lots of trees and shrubs and a few houses and other buildings. All of this overlooking beautifully blue body of water that seemed to go on for miles and miles. The picture was so serene that I mentally slapped Kurt when he brought me back from my calm state as he "bamfed" in front of me.

"Rogue! Isn't dis place preetty?!" Nightcrawler asked, while appearing from the sulfur-smelling smoke.

Coughing from the disgusting smell that I vow to never get over, I managed to wheeze out, "Yeah, it WAS nahce."

"Oh c'mon Rogue, like lighten up!" The recognizable voice of Kitty Pryde piped in.

"Wish Ah could," I muttered more to myself than those around me.

"Alright, guys, let's split up into two groups. Jean, Iceman, Berzerker, Jubilee, and myself will search out the residential or town- whatever it is- area. Nightcrawler, Shadowcat, Wolfsbane, Sunspot, and Rogue will take forest. If anyone sees anything that could be of potential threat, call it in to the corresponding group," said Scott in his leader-like voice.

Everyone nodded their understanding and moved to their respectful sides. "Rogue," Cyclops' voice called out. "You're in charge. Think you can handle that?"

By this time, I was seething with anger, but what kind of an example would I be setting for the younger students if I were to act out with hostile behavior. "Aye, aye ca'tain!" I said with an eye roll and sarcasm rolling off my tongue.

_"__I'm sorry, Rogue… for Scott's behavior. I don't know what's going on with him. It must be the new classes he started teaching. It doesn't take a telepath to sense how stressed he is,"_ Jean Grey mentally said to me.

_"__Jean, ya shouldn't have tah apologize foh his actions. Ah understand that he must be stressed, but whah take it out on us? It's just… not fair, ya know?" _I thought back.

_"__Yeah, I get it. I'll talk to him later about it, okay?"_ She reassured.

_"__Thank ya, Jean, really,"_ I finished.

And with that, the telepathic bond was broken. Ever since the fall of Apocalypse, "Little Miss Popular" became friendlier, actually putting thought into building a friendship and I didn't disagree with the idea. Jean Grey, even as perky as Kitty could be sometimes, was surprisingly a decent person.

Before long, we had made it into the far depths of the tall cedar trees. Unfortunately none of the branches were thick enough to climb or hold onto as demonstrated by Kurt "bamfing" to one of them and almost falling on his face if not for his mutation.

"So," a timid voice sounded behind me. "Are you, like, okay? Cause you and Scott were like totally going at each others' throats earlier, and…"

"Kitty, Ah'm fahne. Don't worry 'bout it. Jus' focus on the mission at hand," I said. "So we can jus' git this ovah with," I muttered the last part.

_At least Scott had the raht mind tah give us Wolfsbane. _

"Hey, Rahne," I said loudly enough to the girl in the back of the line. "Smell anythin'? Hear anythin'?"

"Not really. Just us and the trees, it seems," she said.

"Hmmm," I said as we reached a clearing.

_"__Jean? Have y'all found anythin' yet?"_ I mentally asked the telepath, testing for any type of mental connection.

After a couple seconds came a faint voice within my head. _"Not yet. Just oddly quiet, very unsettling. Nothing for you guys, either?"_

_"__No, nothin'. Keep in touch,"_ I thought, putting my mental block back up again.

"Alraht, gahs," I suddenly said. "We should split up. One group goes down this left path and the other goes down the right. Ah'll take Rahne and Kurt and Roberto go with Kitty. Any problems?" I asked.

"Yeah, like why do I have to go with the two Neanderthals," Kitty said, looking at the two boys goofing off with one another.

"Fahne," I said calmly, but viciously. Roberto, you're with meh. Anyone have any complaints?"

Everybody shook their heads in unison, now afraid to speak up, more so than usual. With that, Sunspot and I took the left path, while the three others took to the right.

"So, what exactly are we looking for?" Roberto asked after a few minutes a peaceful silence.

"Honestly," I began, turning around to face him. "Ah have no idea. The last few tahmes we've done the simulations, it's usually with the Brotherhood, but that was always in a city-lahke environment. This? I dunno. I don' remembah doing this one with Cyclops or even Logan."

As if on cue, a forest fire had began to make its way towards us from behind, sending us further into the forest. And away from everybody else. _Smart move_.

As if things couldn't get worse, a raging Sabertooth came at Roberto and I full force. Being the somewhat good teammate I was, I pushed Roberto out of the way, as Sabertooth sent me flying across the clearing we had managed to get ourselves in into a nearby tree.

To say the least, damn, that really hurt. Good thing though is that I didn't hear or feel anything crack or break.

"C'mon little girl!" The feral man yelled. "You don't have the guts!"

Just then, Sunspot came crashing into Sabertooth with a new, reserved strength that sent Sabertooth to the ground for a few short seconds. "Go!" He yelled.

Too dazed to do much else, I got up and tried to make my way towards him to help when a streak of fire seemed like it was thrown into my way, separating me from Roberto.

I skidded to a halt, but not before the uncontrolled flames lashed out at my hand and arm, exposing the now burned skin.

_Wait. Uncontrolled fire. Fire in general. Threat. Pyro! That must mean we're dealing with the rest of the Acolytes as well. _

I began to run in the opposite direction from my teammate and enemy, pushing branches and anything in my way, away from myself. And of course, there had to be a root. And even more of a cliché, I had to trip over it, landing hard on the forest-y ground.

I attempted to get back up, only to fall right back down due to the shot of pain running through my right ankle up my leg. Groaning, I felt around the area in hopes that I could pinpoint the area of pain.

I groaned as I touched the tender spot, trying not to scream or cry from the pain. It was just a sprain. A big sprain, but still better than being broken.

What happened next, was nothing I couldn't have anticipated in a lifetime.

"What's a fille like yo'self doin' on da groun' like dat?" Was all the man said, while holding out a hand for me to take. Trademark smirk plastered on his face.

_Rogue, it's just a simulation. Don' let 'im get tah ya. _

Scowling at his outstretched hand, I swung my left leg around as to knock him off his feet, only to have him do a backflip and land perfectly on his feet as if nothing happened just then.

"Ah swear, if this guy wasn't alreadeh a Swamp Rat, he'd be a damn cat for all Ah know," I muttered to myself, while staggering to my feet.

"Chere, yo' call moi un cat, non? Remy bets dat yo' can make moi "purr" all night long," Gambit said with that damn smirk of his.

How did he even hear that? Whatever. Now I'm ready for a little action.

Ignoring the pain shooting through my right leg, I trudged over to the grinning Cajun, ready for an attack at any given moment. "What are ya waitin' foh, Swamp Rat? Afraid tah hit a girl?" I said, giving him my own smirk.

_Simulation, Rogue. Jus' attack!_

Sprinting the rest of the way to the blasted Cajun, I threw punch after punch for his face and stomach, each one being deflected by him or by him just dodging it all together. _When did Ah git so sloppeh? _

Apparently, I had given him enough time for him to react, so he pushed me back a ways away from him and took out his bo staff, letting it come out to full length. "Yo' know Chere," he began, while making to strike out toward me. "Remy be t'inkin' 'bout mo'e… pleasurable t'ings dan doin' dis."

"Raght," I curtly stated.

Before I had much time to react, another blow from his staff came at me, which I blocked by crossing my arms over my head and chest. He repeated this over and over again until he had me backed into a tree.

Then, he pushed me up against the tree with all his weight on me, keeping my hands above my head locked in what felt like a death grip. He moved his face to where he was directly looking me in the eyes, only an inch away from touching my face.

I wanted to reach out and just brush my cheek against his, knowing full well that he would drop to the ground, hard as a rock, but something kept me from doing it. Something… entrancing.

"Jus' remember Cherie, yo' asked fo' dis," he said, as he leaned in to kiss me.

In that moment of shock and excitement- Excited shock? Shocked excitement?- I realized I did want it and I thought I was ready. It was just the two of us; his body nearly towering over mine. It seemed as if the world had just stopped for a second, all rational thoughts out the window, no pain from the injuries made itself present and I couldn't comprehend anything other than the fact that I was about to be kissed by "La Diable Blanc" himself.

And then it was gone. And the pain came back as I recalled hearing the last words of Logan screaming "end simulation" before falling onto my knees, ready to pass out from the overwhelming physical pain I felt, as well as the impending sadness that I would soon have to conceal from everyone else.

_It was jus' a simulation. It wasn't real. _

"Rogue!" An angry voice made itself present. I didn't have to look up to see that it was Cyclops. "What were you thinking going off by yourself? Did you even stop to think about how that would overall affect your other teammates? Well?!"

Level-headed Scott seemed to be working himself up into a rage. Something I wasn't ready to deal with yet. I stood up with as much pride as I could with a sprained ankle and other wounds that would probably hurt in five minutes or so and glared at him like no tomorrow. He glared back. I left him standing there, baffled by my standoffish attitude towards him and walked to the medical bay.

The thing about the danger room is that the scenarios may not be real, but the pain and injuries from it sure are. No one better understands that than me, telling by their unscathed bodies and relaxed emotions coming from their expressions.

On the way to the medical bay, I passed by Logan. "Hey, Stripes," he said in his gruff voice. "Do you wanna talk about it?"

_Oh gawd, he saw_. Noticing his sudden awkwardness, I settled with just giving him a small, sad smile and saying, "No, Ah'm fahne."

"Rogue," he said. "I know what I saw down there."

"Logan, jus' drop it. Ah'm fahne," I said a little harsher than I meant.

And with that, Logan left with a huff in the opposite direction of where I was headed, leaving me with my thoughts. _Great._


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: Well, well, well. I guess there are still some good (maybe crazy) people living in this world! :) Haven't gotten many reviews or follows or favorites and all that jazz, but I still got more than I thought I would! Last chapter was entitled "A Moment Forever" which is also a Volbeat song. This chapter's titled "I'm On My Way" by The Proclaimers. I'm thinking of doing that for every chapter. Having a song title to go along with it, that is. Tell me what you guys think? Once again, if there are any grammatical errors or if my dialect is out of whack, PLEASE TELL ME. If you guys don't like the dialect, I can surely take it out, no problem. If you guys want me to keep it the way it is, I would love some help with common German and Russian words and how to accent it!**

**Fair warning, there will be some French words (and a tad bit of Russian), so I'll be posting translations at the bottom of the chapter for you lovely people! Granted, I'm not a French student, so all words/phrases used are from google translate. **

**And last, but not least, enjoy and review! :)**

* * *

Chapter 2 I'm On My Way

Gambit POV

_Merde. _Pourquoi_am Je, Remy LeBeau, ev'n doin' dis? Je can' believe dat Je would ev'n consider joinin'… dare Je say_, "Da X-Men."

"Gambit, did you say something?" My Russian traveling companion asked.

_How did he ev'n hear dat? It was hardly un mumble!_

"Aucun Piotr," I curtly stated.

After seeing the hurt look on his face, I added with my so-called trademark smirk, "An' Je tol' yo' 'fore, call moi Remy. How would yo' like it if Je called yo' Colossus all da damn time?"

The big softy finally gave in and let himself relax at my joking tone of voice. "Alright… Remy," he decided on and even threw in a small, unsure smile.

I could tell why he seemed unsure of this all. Throughout the whole time that I've come to know Piotr Rasputin, all he seemed to care about is family. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. All except Magneto and his constant threats to "take away" his family, basically enslaving the friendly Russian. "Piotr, don' worry 'bout your family. John said he'd take care 'f it. He'll stay wit' 'em and keep 'em safe fo' un while an' den join us at de institute. So long as we get to Bayville safe an' sound, all we have ta worry 'bout is whet'er o' not da Professor will deem us wort'y."

_Jus' keep your cool, Remy. Everyt'ing'll work out how it's s'pposed ta._

"I know Ga- Remy. I just hope they all understand," he stated.

"Piotr, look at me," I began. _Good, he looked_. "They'll have no problem acceptin' yo'. Me on da ot'er hand... Didn't da feral one, Wolverine, personally invite yo' ta join?"

"You remember that?" He asked, surprise evident in his face.

"Of course mon ami!" I exclaimed with a chuckle. "Anywho, you're pretty set. Yo' got it in good wit' 'em already. Moi? Remy t'inks dat kidnappin' one of deir own is kinda frowned upon."

_Especially wit' da feral one… Merde, dey'll nev'r accept moi._

My mind began to wander to mon émeraude ange; Rogue. Her poor, unhappy self. The untouchable. The girl with poisoned skin. No one could have her, no one could truly hold her heart, kiss her, make love to her… the worst blasted curse in the world!

From what I last heard, she still doesn't have much control over her mutation, but whatever. It certainly doesn't change the way I feel about her. Simply stated, I am determined to win her heart, no matter the circumstances. A life without mon chéri is a life I wouldn't want to live.

_Je wonder if she kept da card. Mon Queen of Hearts._

"Remy, don't talk like that!" The thick Russian accent made itself known once again. "Professor Xavier seems like a very lenient, accepting man. I think the only ones you'll have to worry about are Wolverine, the main squad's leader, errr, Cyclops! And Mystique's daughter, Rogue.

"She ain't her daughter," I said with vehemence clear as day in my voice.

Returning back to my normal demeanor, I said, "'Sides, Remy already knows dis, homme."

My thoughts immediately traveled back to the beauty with emerald eyes. The new, profound thought brought on a new wave of confidence I didn't know I was lacking. _Since when does Remy LeBeau get dis worked up o'er un fille?_

In every which way, I will win her heart, but more importantly, I won't break it. Funny thought: the king of heart break vowing not to break the heart of the untouchable. It made me chuckle to myself.

Ever since New Orleans, and even before that, I've had the same reoccurring dream about her. Her showing up at my apartment in nothing but my trench coat and a pair of high heels that would make a poor sinner die and go to heaven, claiming that he'd already seen the light. Her confessing her physical need for me, me going into to kiss her as she sensually disrobes the lone trench coat, and then waking up.

Always the same pitiful ending.

After what felt like hours and hours of day dreaming, Piotr finally pulled me out of reverie, saying, "We should catch the next train. It's beginning to snow again."

"Agreed," I said, pulling the collar of my trench coat over my neck and around the bottom half of my face.

Stupid North Western weather. Dumb ole' Mags just had to relocate us when Apocalypse was unleashed. So, instead of staying towards the East Coast and the South, he had to move us closer to the Canadian border. He didn't even realize how bad it would affect poor Pyro. Therefore, it is only a mystery as to what he's been doing in Russia before I called him.

* * *

As we boarded the train, the two of us got many startled and confused looks. Most likely because two very well built, shady men walked on. What exactly do they think we're going to do- train robbery? The thought of the train robbery cliché elicited a low chuckle from my throat, which seemed to bring an odd look to Piotr's face. _Great, un mo'e confused look ta worry 'bout._ To ease his rising friendly suspicion, I said, "Not'in', homme. Jus' take dis next seat."

It's quite funny to think about it- the whole heist thing. The master thief- the Prince of the Thieves' Guild- making a scene. However, I didn't even have to look around to feel all of the questioning, worrisome glances my traveling companion and I received.

I could understand the downcast glances, though. Colossus, the already big-muscled, Russian was wearing clothes entirely too small for him. For example, whenever he went to stretch his arms, his shirt would ride up half way his torso. I don't understand how he was able to stay warm in just a long-sleeved shirt and pants. It's truly amazing how his body temperature is so balanced out in this crazy unnatural weather.

I, on the other hand, wore a dark red, almost maroon colored sweater and regular jeans with my combat boots, of course, that prompted many suggestive looks from ladies all around us, while I returned their wandering gazes with a suggestive smirk of my own.

Alongside my attire, I also wore my trademark trench coat. Where would I be without it?

Before leaving the Acolyte base, I made Colossus stop just so we could go back and get it, as well as a pair of sunglasses, which is proving to be helpful now, considering my "devil-like" eyes. Also, I managed to fish out a track phone to make a call to John-unnoticed- as to tell him the plan that he was willing to comply with.

Truth be told, I wish I hadn't brought the sun glasses. I mean, mutant and proud, right? It's just weird seeing as how more normal people are either against or for mutant rights depending on where I am. Altogether, just the concept of mutants and normal people coexisting peacefully is hard to grasp, especially after all the hatred and fighting.

That seems to be the whole idea of the X-Men; they strive for peace and never falter in their persistence for it.

I'm trying to tell myself that I'm doing this for Piotr and the overall greater good, but alas, no.

My "change of heart" all began while I was walking by Mags' office to get to the rec room, blood-red apple in hand…

_"__We need her here, NOW!" An angry woman's voice sounded. _

_"__No, Mystique. We must wait for an opportunity to arise. Perhaps Colossus and Sabertooth? Colossus can easily be persuaded, what with his family being at stake… after all, love is weakness. And Sabertooth… Hah! He'll do anything just to piss off the Wolverine. Brute force always seems to do the trick." said the condescendingly calm voice of Erik Lehnsherr._

_"__No! There is no way in hell I will let you send that blood thirsty monster after her," the she-devil said, slamming both of her hands down on the table, totally disregarding Colossus. After calming down, she said, "Rogue is too precious to be taken by him."_

_"__What about Gambit, then? He seems like the type of guy to charm any girl he sets his mind to. Besides that, it seems as if your daughter has the slightest bit of trust and interest in him…" Magneto trailed on._

_"__As much as I hate to admit it," Mystique began. "It's not a terribly bad plan. I'd still rather be the one to do it, though. _

_Before I could stand to hear anymore, I quietly snuck away from the room, blending into the shadows and going down one of the main hallways. _

_I stopped and leant against the wall, a million thoughts running through my mind, all of them concerning mon chéri- Rogue. _

Pourquoi_ would dey wanna take 'er?_

_How would dey e'en do it?_

_Besides, no matter how much she trusts or doesn't trust me, she wouldn't even dream of leaving her family behind. "Bon."_

_Several minutes later, I was still sitting up against the wall, one hand holding the apple core while the other stroked the facial hair growing upon my chin. "T'ink, Remy, t'ink," I muttered to myself, when suddenly, I ran into Piotr's tall frame. _

_And then it clicked. _

_"__Gambit! My apologies, moy drug. I didn't mean to run into you." Piotr said to me._

_It took me a moment before I remembered "moy drug" was "my friend" in Russian. I suppose he took my silence for something bad because he started to say, "Look, I swear I'll watch where I'm going next time I..." _

_"__Aucun apologies needed Piotr. Mais… We need ta talk. __**Now.**__"_

And now, we're here; discreetly making our way towards Bayville. I figured now would be as good as any to take a much needed cat nap. "Piotr, jus' make yourself look as discreet as possible. There's money in da duffel fo' food an' water. Wake moi if yo' get tired o' if yo' notice somet'in' suspicious. Got it?" I said in a stern, yet barely audible voice.

"No problem. Just get some rest now. I'll wake you in a few hours," my Russian companion said with a quick smile.

Giving the train one last once over, I laid my head back on the seat and fell into a restless sleep with the sound of train tracks beneath me and a vision of emerald beauty pulling me to unconsciousness.

* * *

**French to English Translation: Russian to English Translation:**

**Merde- Shit Moy drug- My friend**

**Pourquoi- Why **

**Je- I**

**Aucun- No**

**Moi- Me**

**Mon- My**

**Mon Ami- My friend**

**Mon émeraude ange- My emerald angel**

**Chéri- Darling**

**Homme- Man**

**Fille- Girl**

**Un- A/One**

**Bon- Good**

**Mais- But**


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: Hope you are all enjoying the story so far. And... No negative reviews so far :D Clearly, I must be doing something right. ;) And here's another chapter from Gambit's POV. I've decided that most of the story is going to be from Rogue's perspective because it's more her story. However, there will obviously be Gambit POVs and maybe other people. **

**Fun Fact: When writing this chapter out, I looked up the French translation for "Beautiful" and it came up as "Beau" and "The" is "Le." Therefore, Remy's last name technically translates to "The Beautiful."**

**Anywho, enjoy the chapter! :) Review's are always welcome and the chapter's title comes from the band Van Halen to those who are interested!**

Chapter 3: Stay Frosty

Gambit's POV

After a few hours of falling asleep and waking up, I decided to relieve Piotr for the day. "How long has Remy been out fo'?" I asked him.

"Couple hours. I think seven or eight," He said, contemplatively.

"Dat long?" I said with surprise evident in my voice. "Damn. Get some rest, will ya? We should be dere in a few hours, at da very least."

_Did Je really sleep dat long? It feels like Je didn't sleep at all. _

"Night, Remy," Piotr said already closing his eyes.

I only gave a grunt of understanding, not that Piotr seemed to really care, seeing as how his breathing was already evening out as well as his head beginning to slump forward the tiniest bit.

Really thinking about it, I had no idea where we were. On the positive side, there wasn't any snow on the ground, but where did seven or eight hours get us?

Looking around, I finally found a pretty little red head that could give me some answer. "Je suis désolé chere, mais Je need to ask your gorgeous self something," I said giving her my best suggestive tone of voice and smirk.

"Oh… goodness… I mean. Um," she stumbled over her words. "Yes, anything."

_Tsk, tsk. Un fille as pretty as she should ne'er say dat. Could get 'er in a whole lotta trouble._

Keeping the smirk, I said, "Where are we? An' how long 'til we get ta da town Bayville?"

"Oh, well, I think we're about two, maybe three hours from Bayville. I don't really know, but this train doesn't take us straight there. The town that it does take us to is about an hour away," she shyly said, but with a seemingly new wave of confidence, added, "Why? Got any plans?"

"Unfortunately, oui chere. Maybe some ot'er time dough? Wit' un beau face like yours, I'm sure I'll find yo' anot'er time," I said, slowly dragging my hand from her shoulder down to her hand. Gently taking her hand into mine, I lifted up her hand and gave it a quick kiss. "'Til den, chere."

Leaving the area in which she was seated, my playful smirk dropped at the realization of the information she gave me. An hour outside of Bayville, assuming she meant driving-wise. It'd take much longer to walk. We could take a bus, if there is one that goes to Bayville, assuming we still have enough money by then.

Or we could use my personal favorite method: thievery.

_First t'ing's first, get off da train when e'erybody else does an' find un map. _

Arriving back at our seat, I looked at the sleeping body across from me. In his sleep, Piotr Rasputin actually looked at peace and somewhat content. Any other time, and he would hold back an easy-looking expression.

Much like myself, he's very guarded; always ready for an attack. The difference is that I'm used to it, being the Prince of Thieves gives me the benefit of managing the balance of work and pleasure. Whereas, Piotr seems all work and no play. Hopefully, that'll change once we arrive back in Bayville.

Before I knew it, enough time had passed and we were nearing to a stop at what looked like the correct train station.

And Piotr was still fast asleep. Reaching over to shake his right shoulder, his left hand shot out and grabbed my wrist in a tight grip. "Ah! Not so 'ard, homme. I's jus' moi," I said, holding back a groan of pain.

"Gam- Remy, I'm so sorry. Please forgive me," the bulky Russian said with regret etched in his voice as he quickly let go of my wrist.

"Piotr, don' worry 'bout it. Has anyone e'er told yo' dat you're too nice fo' your own good?" I said with a chuckle as I rubbed my, now, sore wrist. "Now dat dat's outta da way, i's time ta go."

"Already?" he asked incredulously.

"Dat's what I'm thinkin', mon ami," I said. "C'mon, le's get outta here."

As we exited the train into the darkness of late November, a chill ran down my spine. It may not be snowing, but it was definitely cold enough to.

"We're not in Bayville," stated Piotr with a slight scowl.

"Je sais, Piotr," I said with an eye roll.

"Izvinite, Remy," he said.

"Le's jus' find un map an' get outta here 'fore someone notices…"

"Hey, where's my wallet?!" An angry sounding man yelled.

"Gambit…" Piotr said warningly.

"Je suggest we leave now, don'tcha t'ink?" I said giving the big Russian my trademark smirk, popping the collar of my trench coat to prevent the night time chill.

Walking over to the information desk, we got many confused stares, much like the ones from when we arrived inside the train. _Some t'ings jus' ne'er change, do dey?_

Grabbing a map, I discovered that we were only about a thirty-minute drive from the initial entrance to Bayville. "Remy be t'inkin' dat we take un bus ta Bayville and just walk the rest of the way. T'oughts?" I said, pretty sure there isn't a bus that goes all the way to the Institute.

"That's fine with me. The sooner we leave this place, the better," Piotr said. "Besides, I think the guy you pick pocketed is talking to the police."

I followed his line of sight to the man he was referring to and said, "Oui, time ta go."

Because we wasted more time than needed, we were just barely able to catch the next and last bus of the night to Bayville. Unsurprisingly, there wasn't very many people on the bus seeing as how it was already ten o'clock at night. Most people were already home with their families. Speaking of, "I'll call John when we get ta walkin'. Dat okay?"

"Sure," he said trying to get comfortable in his seat.

At least we only had to be on here for half an hour. What to do, what to do?

Not even stooping so low as to trace the patterns on the uncomfortable bus seats, I took out my deck of cards to fiddle with and started thinking about my favorite thing.

Rogue.

Just the very thought of her name made my heart skip a beat. And those eyes, those beautiful emerald eyes almost made my heart just stop all together. Her figure alone could bring any guy to his knees, what with her perky bust and naturally wide hips bones. Any man could see that her curvy body was nothing short of perfection.

I remember when I took her to New Orleans. She seemed so happy to be back somewhere familiar. Somewhere she most certainly missed. Maybe I can even take her back there sometime.

I remember the rare, yet sincere smiles that she gave me and in those moments how badly I craved to see them appear on her face once again. No matter how small or big those smiles might be, I crave and thrive to give her more of them as the days go on and on.

Coming back from my thoughts, I realized that we were almost there and started putting the cards back in my pocket. _Am Je giddy o' somet'ing? It almost feels good ta be back here again. _

Thankfully getting off the bus and stretching my legs, I decided to call John now. The phone rang about three times before anyone picked up. "Hello?" A confused voice sounded on the other end.

"John," I simply stated.

On the other line, I heard a little chuckle and he said, "LeBeau. Miss me already, mate?"

Giving my own chuckle, I said, "You know me, homme. How're things in Russia? Is Piotr's family safe?"

"Sure are! Very kind people, actually. Listen, I don't know how long you can talk for, but do you think you could put Colossus on the phone? Got some lovely ladies here to talk to him," the man known as Pyro said to me.

"Sure t'ing, John. Here 'e is," I said handing the phone to Piotr who eagerly took it from me with a big, happy grin plastered on his face.

Tuning out their conversation that was spoken entirely in Russian, I decided that now would be as good as any time for a smoke. Lighting it with the tip of my finger, I began taking a slow, long, much needed drag.

Looking around at our surroundings, I noticed that there were little to no people out and about at this hour, the occasional light of a lamp turning on or off and the street lights that shown a dimmed light.

Everything seemed the same as how I left it. Nothing's changed.

Then there was a snarl. A very familiar snarl. And it was almost directly behind us. _Merde, how did dey get here already? More importantly, how did Je pas notice dem?_

"Piotr… get ready ta run. Mais don' change into your metal form," I said as quietly as possible, not knowing who was accompanying the snarling man.

Of course, the feral Sabertooth had heard me and attacked us with a loud, unneeded roar.

Had it not been for my cat-like reflexes and Piotr's natural strength, Victor Creed would have run directly into us, no remorse.

Charging a card, I quickly threw it at the feral man and got out of there as soon as I possibly could.

Card after card, it felt like it was no use against the beast as we traveled further down the main road to a nearby park. I watched as Colossus' body was thrown into a thick tree, causing the tree to fall on top of his body, trapping him.

"Why don' yo' jus' go home an' play wit' your ball o' yarn, kitty-cat," I said, ignoring the burning in my legs from moving so much.

"Foolish Cajun, did you really think you and your friends would be able to leave unnoticed? You have a contract that needs to be upheld!" Sabertooth unnecessarily yelled.

"Bien, Je hereby revoke mon contract, den," I said with a smirk.

I guess that was the wrong thing to say, considering he attempted to attack me again.

I threw five more cards before silence.

_Da calm 'fore da storm._

And then more silence.

_Mais where is da storm?_

Waiting a few more seconds, I heard a low growl sound behind me and as I was turning, he slashed at my side, cutting through my trench coat, sweater, and skin.

In my moment of unfathomable surprise, I accidently gave him another chance to attack. Being the "calm" man he is, he tackled me to the ground as I tried to escape before he crushed my ribs with his impending weight.

Punch after punch, I almost couldn't take it anymore. I knew I had a split lip and probably a bloody nose. I could also feel warm blood pooling around my side.

I decided to give it one last try to push Victor Creed off of me and it worked. Or maybe he was just pitying me. As I tried to stand up, though, I almost fell back against the ground. I just felt so light-headed.

Quickly regaining himself, Sabertooth retaliated one final time and sent me a bone crushing kick to the stomach, almost making me heave up this morning's breakfast. "Magneto sends his regards, fancy boy," he said before nonchalantly walking away from my crumpled form.

For what felt like hours was only a couple minutes before Piotr was able to lift the tree and come to my aid. "Oh niet, Remy what happened?" He asked while trying to lift me up as I winced from the growing pain in my side.

"Magneto," I wheezed. "Sends 'is regards, apparently."

All I heard from there on out was the shuffling of my Russian companion attempting to figure out what to do and listening to him swear in his native language. Using what little consciousness I had left, I said, "Help moi up, so we can go ta da mansion."

"Gambit, can you even walk?" He asked.

"Wit' un peu help, oui."

And so we went on from there, my arm slung over his shoulder for support as I spoke only the directions to where the mansion was. It took nearly a half hour longer than what we had anticipated because I didn't want Piotr to carry me there as he kept suggesting that I'm "too prideful" and other things that I would laugh at had it not been for the massive pain that was overcoming me.

Soon enough, we were coming face to face with the main gate, nearly midnight, looking a little bit worse for wear.

No words needed to be spoken as the large gate opened for the both of us and the voice of Professor Xavier sounded in my head, saying, "Welcome. We're sending Wolverine and Cyclops out to assist Gambit. We can provide any help and hospitality needed. But I will need to personally talk to the both of you, alone."

And with that, all I could see were the increase in amount of lights being turned on as they grew blurrier and blurrier through my eyes.

And then it was dark.

* * *

**French Translations: **

**Je suis désolé- I'm sorry **

**Oui- Yes **

**Beau- Beautiful**

**Je sais- I know**

**... Je pas- ...I not**

**Un peu- a little**

**Chere- Dear**

**Russian Translations:**

**Izvinite- Sorry**

**Niet- No**


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: Alright, ladies and gents, I present the fourth chapter in this lovely little story. I only have a vague idea of where I really want to go with this, so it would really help if you guys PM some suggestions on where to go from here? I guess you could call this writer's block... :( Ugh, I feel so bad about it, but whoever helps me will get full recognition and credit in the author's note. Help me reader's you're my only hope. ;)**

**Also, I would like to apologize for the amount of time this took me. I got out the first three chapters within five days and just left you guys hanging for a week before I even got a chance to sit down and write out this chapter.**

**This chapter's title "Be Not So Fearful" is by A.C. Newman. Some may recognize this as the song from The Walking Dead when Maggie, Glenn, Sasha, Abraham and them all made it to Terminus. It's very repetitive, but it's a good, straight-forward song. With that said, enjoy the chapter! Reviews are always welcome :)**

Chapter 4: Be Not So Fearful

Rogue's POV:

Finally, after three long hours of sitting in the medical bay, I was able to leave with the "privilege" of knowing that I had a slight concussion and a sprained ankle. _Could beh worse. 'Sides, gets meh outta a couple dangah room sessions._

Aside from Scott's unnecessary behavior earlier, everything seemed to be going well for a Saturday afternoon during the short, cold days of November.

The sky was lit brightly by the sun, not a cloud in sight. Contrary to the beauty of the day, the weather itself was another matter. If I were to go outside, I could see my breath, clear as day, indicating that it was most certainly cold enough to snow.

Living down south in Mississippi for the majority of my life, I came to love the warm, muggy air. Going to New Orleans with Gambit that one time that felt like years ago, but the memories, good and bad, are still forever carved in my brain.

Moments like walking through the streets of freaks all around at night during Mardi Gras and the authentic southern food from that little jazz club in the French Quarter. Of course, running into Julienne was unwanted, but Remy and I made a pretty good team.

_Since when did Ah start thinkin' of the Swamp Rat as Remy? _

It felt… nice being with him that day and night. I told him things that I haven't even told Kitty about and he didn't judge or make any sly remarks, for the most part. It was just weird to be able to trust someone else besides myself. _Can Ah trust 'im, though? What does it e'en mattah? 'Im, an' the res' of the Acolytes 'ave been pretty "undah the radar" since annihilatin' Apocalypse. Who's tah say that he'll e'en show 'is face 'round this area evah again?_

"Rogue!" A familiar voice shouted from down the hall, leading to the foyer. "Down for a chat?"

_Jean._

"Sure, Jean. What's up?" I said with little enthusiasm in my voice.

"About Scott… Once again, I'm sorry he acted like that. It was totally outta line and he wasn't any better towards the rest of the group and me," she said. "I think it might just be the extra classes we've been teaching, lately. You know how the younger ones are."

"Yeah, Ah do," I said with a small smirk, as we walked down the halls to the girls' dorm area.

"So, back in the DR, I sensed something," she said in a serious tone after a few second of silence. "From you."

_Oh gawd, no. _

"Yeah?" I asked trying to play the dumb card. _Le's jus' see what she thahnks she knows. _

"I didn't go into your mind or anything, not that I would, but your emotions were so overwhelming that I could make them out, one by one," she said.

"Lahke what?" I asked skeptically.

"Well, a lot of things. Passion. Want. Betrayal…"

"Alrahght, tha's enough," I said with slight irritation. "I's not yours or anyone else's business what Ah'm feelin'."

"I know, and I'm sorry. It's just… if you need to talk or anything, I'm here," she said while laying a hand on my shoulder.

"I's fahne, Ah guess," I said, resignation laced into my voice and shaking her hand off of my shoulder. _Man, can't this convahsation jus' end already?_ "Ah'm gonna grab a shower. Latah, Jean."

"See ya later then, Rogue!"

After a nice, long shower and a cat nap, I decided to just stay in bed with a good book for the rest of the evening.

* * *

All was peaceful until Kitty decided to phase through the door as my back was turned. I didn't know she was there until she sounded her voice, saying, "Hey Rogue, it's like dinner time. Are you coming?"

I nearly jumped from my place on the bed before regaining my usual, calm exterior and saying, "Nah, not tonahght, Kit. Ah'll prob'ly jus' grab somethin' later," I said.

"Alright… Are you like okay?" She asked worriedly.

"Ah'm fahne, really. Jus' tired 's all," I lied.

"Okay, well, like have fun with your weird romance novel," she said with a little chuckle.

And with that, she phased back out of my room.

_Gawd, that gits so annoyin'!_

Ever since more mutants started showing up to the Institute, the Professor decided that it was time to make a few upgrades by adding more rooms, so that everyone who was currently living here got their own room. But the absolute cherry on the top was that we got our own bathrooms, meaning I don't have to share shampoo or worry about people leaving the toilet seat up!

The Professor had our rooms set up to basically have a queen-sized bed, dresser, two beside tables, two small, plush chairs, and a small coffee table. Because of the room's size, this also left the option to have more furniture or we could switch out furniture with whatever we buy. On top of all that, we can hang whatever we want up, paint it however we want, so it's almost like having the luxury of actually being home.

Home.

_Is this place mah home? Ah mean, Ah know Ah have people here that love meh lahke family, but 's it enough? _

_Maybe Ah should take 'nothah trip down south foh a little whahle._

It was nearly eleven-thirty when I finished the novel. Just like anything else I read, it was a typical romance:

Guy and girl are off to a rough start.

They eventually fall in love.

Some impending person or thing tries to keep them apart.

They don't give up. Happily ever after.

Therefore, it wasn't anything I was even remotely expecting to happen in my life, considering my mutation.

_Ah need tah start the sessions with Professor X again soon. _

Before Mystique "convinced" me to release Apocalypse, the Professor and I had been working towards controlling my mutation and it was actually working. We found a way to lock all of the Psychs away, so I wouldn't get anymore wicked migraines, but that was about as far as we got before that all came to a rapid ending.

My thoughts were interrupted by the opening and closing of doors coming from the halls. _What the hell's goin' on?_

Irritated, I threw off the warm and soft dark green comforter that covered my body and made to grab the small gloves off of the nightstand, not that they would do me any good, considering I was only wearing a tank top and shorts anyway.

As I was slipping on the right glove, Kitty popped her head in threw my door and said, "Oh, good, you're like up!"

"Yeah, wha's goin' on out there?"

"I don't know, something about like the possibility of having like new recruits or something. Bobby said he like heard Scott and Logan like… grumbling about it a couple minutes ago," said Kitty, still halfway phased in my room.

"Ah'll be out in a minute, Kit," I said with little excitement.

_Alrahght, le's go see what all the fuss's 'bout. _

Upon walking into the main foyer by the front door, I was surprised to see all the students gathered near the doors. The opened doors.

Through the crowd of curious students I was able to make out the back side of a tall, muscly man. Like, really muscly, with raven black short hair.

_The guy seems familiar, but Ah can't put a name tah 'is face. Ah can't e'en see 'is face. _

He turned around.

_The Russian Acolyte?! Wha's 'is name? Colossus. What brings 'im 'ere? And Ah thought Kitty said there was mo'e than one person with 'im…_

And then I saw it, rather him.

Remy LeBeau- Gambit, lying in the Russian's arms, unconscious. And there was blood, so much blood.

I just couldn't take it. It was too horrifying.

I ran back into my room.

All this time, I never would've figured that Gambit and Colossus would switch sides. Sure, they seemed nice- getting past Gambit's cocky attitude and supposedly, Logan invited the Russian to join the X-Men- but so much as to go against their previous loyalties?

Aside from that, how did Remy end up the way he did? It was so unsettling seeing the flirty, carefree Cajun in the broken state he looked to be in, no matter how much he got under my skin.

Pulling open the top drawer of my dresser, I moved some shirts and tank tops out of the way to reveal none other than a playing card. _The Queen of Hearts. _

As I stared into the details of the card, I remembered the conversation we had in the train car.

_"…__Ah always save 'er fo' last," he said._

_"__The Queen of Hearts?" I sneered._

_He pressed a chaste kiss to the face of the card and said, "Mah luckeh ladeh. She's gotten meh outta a whole lotta jams."_

The memory brought a small, lone tear to my eye. After New Orleans, we left things on a good note and I was always kind of hoping that he would join us so we could become better friends.

I put the card away and wiped the tear from my cheek, flicking it vehemently towards the ground. Laying back in bed, I drifted off into a fitful sleep filled with demon eyes and a mesmerizing Sothern-French accent.

* * *

Two days later and nothing had changed. Except for a bulky Russian that Kitty seemed to be batting her eyes at and a still unconscious Cajun in the Med Bay.

Ever since "that night," I had kept the playing card in my back pocket and secretly hoped that Gambit would wake up sooner than later. Granted, I hadn't actually been to the Med Bay yet, only heard from others his state of being.

It wasn't until during breakfast that I decided to make my trek to the Medical Bay. Fortunately, nobody tried to stop me or even noticed I was gone. Not even Kitty. _Mus' beh off 'er game. _

Entering the spacious hospital-like area, I was surprised to see no one down here. Not even the Russian- whose name I found out was Piotr, even though most people just call him Pete- or Mr. McCoy.

Finding my way to his bedside, I took the rolling chair from a nearby desk and sat down in it.

Gambit seemed to be in better shape; the gash in his side stitched up, no longer wearing blood-stained clothing and the cuts and bruises that once plastered his face and arms were almost fully gone.

_Wow, guy heals fast. If Ah didn't know any bettah, he could beh some weird descendant of Logan. _

_E'en when he's hurt, he's still good-lookin'. Ugh! Rogue, stop thinkin' lahke that. Better mah thoughts than any of the Psychs, 'specially 'is._

He looked so peaceful in his sleep. I wondered what he was dreaming about. There were no wrinkles or worry lines on his tinted skin and he almost looked content and peaceful. Something it seemed he couldn't have at any other time, no matter what.

"Stupid Cajun. How could ya let this happen tah yaself? Hmph, thought ya were smartah than this," I said, fishing for a reaction that I knew wasn't coming. So I continued. "Piotr seems nahce; he tol' meh that the two'a ya left tah ensure his family's safety. He also said that ya were holdin' back, lahke ya weren't tellin' the whole story. But still, what ya did foh 'im was very noble… Hell what ya did foh meh was noble…" _no one 'as e'er made meh feel wanted lahke the way ya are 'round meh_, "but what're ya doin' 'ere? Jus' seems so unlahke ya…"

Taking out the card from my back pocket, I held it up to my face and set it down on the bed. "Ya once tol' meh that this card," I said while holding the card up, like he was meant to see it. "Basically got ya outta a whole lotta shit. Maybeh it can help ya out now."

I mirrored his image from the train car and kissed the face of the card, while closing my eyes and letting my lips linger on the playing card for a few seconds. As I opened my eyes, I was unsurprised to find that the card was tinted in the color of my lipstick where my lips had been. As I slipped the card into his seemingly waiting hand, I took the moment to feel the calloused, rough fingers beneath my gloves and the great warmth that they were emitting.

With that, I stood up looking at the machines he was hooked up to. _Steady heartbeat's always good_, the heart monitor's constant "beeping" reassured me.

Making my way over to the door, I thought about the potential that today would bring. Coming down here- saying what I did- felt as if a tremendous weight had been lifted from me.

_Maybeh Ah would do somethin' with Kitty today._ I smiled, thinking to myself that today could actually be different from the rest.

And then, out of nowhere, a groggy sounding voice made itself present. "Chere?"

Dropping my smile at the all too familiar French accent and pet name, I turned around, not bothering to mask my surprise. "Ya're awake."

It was a statement, but came out like a question.

Giving me his trademark smirk, Gambit said, "Oui, clearly, Je am."

It was almost as if one moment lasted a thousand years, as we just stared at each other. Me at his red on black, devil-like eyes, and him at my deep green ones.

But a moment was just that- a moment. It was then that Mr. McCoy came in. Followed by Jean. And then Scott. And then Piotr. And then the Professor. They were all fussing over Gambit when I decided to make my escape, easily slipping past them all in their stupor. Turning my head around to take one last glance of the scene that was playing before my very eyes, I found those beautiful black and red orbs before making my final escape.

Walking back up to the main floor, I thought about what just transpired before me and came to the conclusion:

_That jus' happened. _

* * *

**Alright, party people, hope you guys enjoyed the chapter, 'cause I enjoyed writing it! Reviews are always lovely to get from you beautiful people, so keep it coming and it'll give me more reason to write/finish chapters faster! :D Keep it classy, mis amigos!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: And after five-six days, she awakens! Hope you all like this little Gambit POV chapter I've pieced up for you this evening! :)**

**I really want to thank all that have followed/Faved/Reviewed for this fic! It always makes me happy that you guys are indulging in this little story of mine and that you guys actually care to tell me what you like and don't like! Should you guys have questions, whether they be from previous chapters or what to roughly expect in the future, I wouldn't mind answering them in the author's notes I post. Don't be shy. ;)**

**This chapter's title comes from an artist by the name of José González who did music for the 2013 film, The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. If you haven't already, I truly encourage you guys to listen to the song and watch the movie! **

**And without further ado, enjoy. :)**

Chapter 5: Step Out

Gambit's POV:

Darkness.

It's what I saw.

It's what I felt.

_Where am Je?_

_Who am Je?_

Suddenly, images began to fill the darkened spots above me.

Picture after picture, too fast to tell what they actually were, persisted. Some were bright, others only a hint of dark blues or purples or greens.

To some, the picture show may have been fascinating, but quite frankly, I was already beginning to feel the oncoming headache. I tried squinting my eyes to make out some of the moving images, but it only seemed to make it worse. Too apprehensive to take my eyes away, I laid on the concrete feeling ground contemplating what to do next.

Next, the pictures seemed to form a pattern. They weren't going in chronological order, it seemed, but they looked more to be like going from everything pure and good in the world to a poor sinner's worst nightmare.

I caught glimpses of a smiling child with red on black eyes and auburn colored hair tackling an older boy with crazy blonde hair and olive colored eyes to the ground. Both children were smiling bright enough to light the darkest hour of the night.

Image after image of smiles and light and happiness passed by. Everything new and in some sense, almost enlightening.

The picture changed to the same children, but older- much older- both standing in almost identical tuxedos, while the blonde boy was holding the hands of a very beautiful blonde woman with piercing sea-blue eyes wearing a white gown that fitted her figured perfectly. Standing next to the couple was the auburn haired boy with a far away, but happy look on his face, obviously elated for the man next to him.

Images passed, clearly not significant as they went on at rapid speed. It kept going and going, things began to blur until everything stopped.

Granted, it took me a moment to adjust my eyes to the new-found picture. _Now dats un beau fille._

The girl looked to be no older than seventeen or eighteen, but to the normal eye, she could pull off the legal drinking age if she wished. The girl had pale, porcelain skin with no blemishes in sight and hints of faded purple eye shadow and lipstick. A look of surprised horror crossed her gorgeous features, clearly not expecting what she was seeing. Her hair was dark brown, shoulder length with two white streaks servings as her bangs. The most alluring of her features were her jade-green eyes that seemed to contour her face. Staring into them, I felt as if I could get lost in a sea of green any and every day.

_C'est un ange._

In my moment of no actual mind set, I stupidly reached out to touch the portrait-looking image only to have it disappear before my fingers before I could get a chance to graze it, leaving nothing but seemingly endless darkness in its place.

Within seconds, the picture changed to the auburn haired boy staring intently at his hands, tears straining his face. Surrounding him was charred wood and fragments of metal that once used to be furniture and various different trinkets. A pair of new-looking black gloves sat near the child, tag still held in place.

Looking at my own two hands, I noticed my own pair of gloves.

_Dis ain't no place… Dis be un mem'ry!_

The boy was me. This poor, sad boy was me. Any happiness at discovering my "location" dissipated as overwhelming sadness consumed me.

Before I had much time to dwell on the memory, a new one appeared of me a little bit older, but not much. I looked to be in grade school at the time. This new picture showed me walking on a concrete walkway, school crossing signs and a parking lot littered the background. I seemed to have been hunched over, ever so slightly with my hands in my pockets, the ends of black gloves visible. A scowl was splayed upon my lips, though my eyes were unreadable due to the sun glasses blocking the red on black orbs from the rest of the world. Children were spread out all around my past self, yet none of them stood within ten feet as they were holding their hands up to others' ears in a whispering manner. Those behind the poor, friendless boy stared hard enough to burn holes into the back of his head, while those in front and to the sides avoided looking at him.

_Une vie full o' shame est no vie tah live at all._

Years seemed to pass, all full of grief to no end. And a picture of me years later, grown up, now taller than both the aging brunette man to my right and the blonde man and his wife to my left gathered with many others dressed in black. All of them surrounding newly dug up dirt and a tombstone reading:

**R.I.P.**

**Etienne Marceaux- Beloved son, brother, guild member. You lie forever in our hearts. **

Every being there looked gloomy. Even the weather gave away a sullen feeling, showing dark grey skes, threatening the mourning people with rain. Every being present in the image had a shoulder to cry on for the beloved child. All except the demon-eyed man who looked even more broken than those around him, as he kept his head down to shelter his eyes from the world.

_An' at da end o' fear, oblivion._

The thought played in my mind as the picture disappeared with no warning. With that, I was able to put names to faces.

_Mon name is Remy Lebeau._

_Da man wit' long blonde hair est mon step brother, Henri. His wife est named Mercy. _

_Da man who was buried est mon cousin. Dat was deux years ago. _

Memories and information came back to me at lightning fast speed, though it felt as if they weren't gone, but like they were just lost in this state of oblivion.

The last and most recent memory drove me to do something. It was of the bits and pieces of conversation I caught between Mystique and Magneto.

My feelings of confusion of the random memories displayed before me just moments ago vanished as a sense of anger began to build. _Je need tah get tah da X-Men. Tah Rogue. _

In the back of my mind, I could almost hear her calling my name. Over and over again, so I began to run. I ran in the direction of the voice and the black nothingness before me began to change into an actual setting.

_It looks like un town… C'est… Bayville?_

My eyes grew at the new setting and the familiarity. I was brought out of my reverie by the same angelic voice calling my name over and over again and I began to run so fast as if my life depended on it.

Time seemed to slow down as I neared my desired location. Getting closer, I saw that the Institute had its same shape, but it was lit brightly, emitting a shine greater than the sun at its highest point on a summer day. This, however, didn't slow my pace one bit. The beautiful voice was still making itself present coming from the glowing building and I sure as hell wasn't planning on stopping.

People always say in a joking manner to not go towards the light, but that's all that I seemed to be capable of doing in the moment. It wasn't the light I was chasing, but the southern voice within it.

After what felt like years, I was able to reach the gate for Xavier's School for the Gifted. The gate was wide open, set to invite me in. I had barely walked five steps past the gate before the light consumed me, the same southern voice calling my name.

I didn't know I had closed my eyes until I opened them to see a white ceiling and heard footsteps walking away from me. Turning my head, I saw her. _Mon émeraude ange_. "Chere?" I said, sounding just as bad as I felt.

"Ya're awake," she said after a few seconds of being dumbfounded by something.

"Clearly, Je am," I said putting on a smirk, despite the amount of strength it took.

She looked like she wanted to say more, but was soon dismissed by the voices of the blue, beast-like creature, Hank McCoy. "Ah, Gambit, good to see you awake," he said while checking the heart monitor and other various things around me.

Before I could come up with any response, more people came in. A teenage couple holding hands, one wearing a pair of sunglasses, the other with flaming red hair. _Cyclops an' Jean Grey_. I remembered reading their files, but there was nothing about them being in a relationship.

The next face to make itself present, brought a smile to my own. Piotr looked flustered, as if he were running, and not far behind him was the man in the wheelchair- Charles Xavier.

He gave off a fatherly smile to me to reassure all of the unanswered questions I had swimming in my brain. Random voices filled around me, but I wasn't listening. I sought out the emerald eyes once more, before she turned with a defeated look across her face and walked out of the hospital-like area. I suddenly felt the light weight of an object within my hand. _Mon Queen o' Hearts?_ I was pleased to see it as well as a hint of purple lipstick lingering on the playing card. I smirked to myself. _So da Rogue does care._

It wasn't until after she left, that I began to listen to the voices surrounding me. "How are you feeling, Gambit?" a wisdom-filled voice asked. Looking up from the card, I saw that it was the Professor that asked the question, still wearing a kind smile across his face.

"Drowsy, mais okay, Je guess," I said.

"Good, sooner you feel better, sooner you can leave," a voice grumbled to the right of me.

"Scott!" The woman, Jean Grey, all but quietly yelled at him.

Ignoring his comment, I turned to the doctor and the Professor and asked, "How long 'ave Je been 'ere fo'?"

"Roughly two days' time," the doctor said.

A silence fell over the small group surrounding me, as I furrowed my brow in frustration. _Deux days?! Je don' e'en 'member walkin' into da buildin' an' I've been 'ere fo' deux days!_

"Hank, do you mind taking Scott and Jean to accompany you to breakfast this morning? Gambit, Colossus and I need to have a chat," the Professor said in a professional, yet calm way.

"Of course, Charles," Mr. McCoy said. "You two lead the way!"

Then three of them exited the room, much to Scott's dismay, but they were now gone only leaving me, Piotr and **the **Charles Xavier. "Now that you're awake Gambit," he began, when I interrupted him.

"S'il vous plaît, Professor Xavier, mais call moi Remy," I said as politely as I could.

"Yes, of course, my apologies Remy. As I was saying, now that you're awake, I would like to ask you both a few questions, if you don't mind?" He asked.

"You've shown us nonstop hospitality, my friend. The least Remy and I can do is give you the answers you need," Piotr said from my bedside with his Russian accent ever so present.

"If we're gonna do dis whole interrogation t'ing, can someone help moi sit up. Je feel like I've been hit by un train."

"Close," said the Professor. "If I do remember correctly, it was Sabertooth who put you in such a state?"

"Oui," I said as Piotr helped sit me up properly.

"What drove you to come to us?" The Professor asked clasping his hands together in his lap, after I was settled.

"Well, Remy here told me that now would be as good as time as any to just pack up and leave without anyone getting hurt," Piotr said. "Well… to some extent."

"Actually, Piotr," I began. "Da's not why we came 'ere." Both men stared at me with questioning eyes. "Professor, Je overheard da boss homme- errr, Magneto talkin' wit' Mystique about bringin' Rogue there. An' dey were willin' tah use whatever force necessary, so Je took Colossus an' we went."

"I see. So, do we have reason to believe Rogue is in true danger?" Asked Charles.

"Honestly," I said. "Je ne sais pas. Yo', of all people, would know how ruthless Magneto can be."

"Yes, Eric has always had a bit of a temper," The professor said, looking downwards.

"Mais, da homme wouldn't do it without un plan. An' half o' his employees 'ave jus' left 'im. He's left wit' little options," I said optimistically.

"And that Rogue girl, she can take care of herself. I've talked to her a couple of times and she just has that personality," Piotr piped in.

_Ain't dat da truth._

"Because this plan of theirs doesn't seem to be effective, I don't believe we need to take any drastic precautions as of now and I'd prefer to keep this between the three of us as to not alarm anyone," said Charles.

Piotr and I shook our heads in agreement, afraid to say anything more.

"So, I have one more question," Charles Xavier started, his smile returning to his face. "Are you both here to join the X-Men?"

Piotr and I looked at each, having a silent conversation. It's a simple yes or no question, but in all actuality it could change the rest of our lives.

Coming here and staying here, ties us down. It ties me down. _Can Je e'en be capable of doin' somet'in' good fo' once? O' will Je ruin moi chances?_

Piotr and I came to a silent, but mutual agreement. "Professor Xavier, if you'll have us, we'd like to become a part of the X-Men team," Piotr spoke up.

"Mr. Lebeau, Mr. Rasputin," he said, respectfully looking at us. "I would be proud to call you both X-Men. Welcome to your new home."

* * *

**Alright, guys! Hope y'all enjoyed this chapter. Once again, I'm sorry it's taking me awhile to write out chapters. Reviews and suggestions are always welcome. :) **

**Also, anyone recognize the Batman quote I put in there? "And at the end of fear, oblivion." ~Scarecrow, Batman: Arkham Asylum**

**French Translations:**

**Un beau fille- A beautiful girl**

**C'est- It's **

**C'est un ange- It's an angel **

**Une vie- A life**

**Est- Is**

**Deux- Two**

**S'il vous plait- Please**

**Je ne sais pas- I don't know**


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Note: I don't quite know why it took me so long to write this chapter. It was a... conflicting week, so my emotions have been all out of whack. From where I'm at, it's nearly 3:00 in the morning, but I just had to get this out there for the world to see! :) Fair warning this chapter is longer than the others, but not by much. It covers two of my favorite days of the week (Friday and Saturday) and there's kind of a lot going on in this one chapter.**

**So, I've decided that tomorrow I'm going to get my lazy ass into gear and actually plan some stuff out for this story as well as some other ideas that have been stuck in my mind for the past week or so, meaning within the next two weeks, updates are probably going to come faster than once a week. By the way, sorry to you all for that. :/**

**This week's chapter is from Daughtry's 2011 album, Break the Spell. It's a really good and cute song. I recommend it to you all if you haven't heard it! :) As always, reviews and PMs are welcome and don't forget to follow and fav and share with your friends my little story I have for you beautiful people! With that, enjoy! :D**

Chapter 6: Outta My Head

Rogue POV:

A week passed by and my ankle was almost fully healed from the danger room session. A week since Gambit and Colossus' unexpected arrival. And five days since Gambit has woken up in the Medical Bay.

To say I was avoiding him was the understatement of the year. My days this past week looked the same. Get up and ready for school, steering clear of the boys' wing at all costs, grabbing breakfast at the last possible minute, going to school, coming back to the Institute, "doing homework" for the majority of the night and getting a late dinner or no dinner at all.

Even in the short amount of time I spent outside of my room or not at school, that damned Swamp Rat always seemed to be lurking around, looking for an excuse to end up back in the Med Bay. _Ah swear, 'fore Ah met this Cajun, Ah had nevah wanted tah punch someone so bad._

Today was Friday, which meant the last day before the weekend and I had no idea how I was going to get through the next two days.

_Maybeh it's time tah take that shoppin' trip with Kit_. I internally shuddered at the thought. Shopping wasn't my thing, but if it got me away from **him**, I could put up with it.

After the whole Apocalypse ordeal, which had scared both humans and mutants, people started being nicer to the mutants that helped put him back to sleep. Granted, we weren't praised, but people started letting up on hating mutants. Some, that is.

With that being said, we were still allowed to attend regular high school under oath, swearing that we wouldn't use our "gifts" in any given situation. _Fahne by meh._

It was almost nearing the end of fifth period math when I finished my homework early. Again. As much as I don't want to admit it, math is one of my strongest subjects, English and art class being the others.

_Ten minutes left. Thank Gawd. _

_I let my mind wander to what this weekend would most likely look like. I can already see the new clothes I would want. Mostly sweaters, purple and green, of course, but maybe it's time for something new. Maybe something… red. _

_A girl who has white streaks in her hair wearing a skin tight elegant red dress stands directly in front of a sinfully handsome man with red on black eyes. The man was nearly a foot taller than her, towering over her, even when she wears high heels. Standing hand in hand, the man suddenly spins her in his arms and the couple fall into a graceful waltz. _

_Twirling and spinning like none other, both were smiling and laughing as if they didn't have a care in the world. The beautiful man makes to twirl the girl once again, but she trips due to her own clumsiness and begins to fall for the ground._

_Cringing from the immense pain she feels is sure to come, she almost doesn't realize the pair of hands that shoot out to catch her. Opening her eyes, she seems that his red eyes are staring at her own green ones. The couple was only mere centimeters apart, so when he began to flicker his eyes between her own and her plump red lips, she couldn't refuse._

_The girl pulled the man in for a heated and passionate kiss. Minutes passed by before both had to stop for air, unlocking their mouths, but resting their foreheads against each other's. A sweet gesture that the two seemed to share to make up for the lost contact of warm lips against cold ones. "So cherie, shall yo' an' Remy retreat tah bed fo' da night?" The man said, giving the girl a wink. _

_"__Ya know it, sugah," the girl said, voice layered thick with a southern accent. _

_Both pulled themselves together for one last kiss, their mouths about to connect, when…_

_"__**Diiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing**__."_

I nearly fell out of my seat, looking around, only to see that people were already heading out of class to go to their last period of the day. My face turned a beet red at the realization that I was day dreaming about that Cajun again.

_Get ahold of yaself Rogue. _

I walked to my next and last class of the day and took a seat by the window that out looked the diverse sets of trees that surrounded the court yard. Being as simple as it was, it was a sight to see. The amount of trees made for a thick forest, so the trees in the front varied, while the ones behind them slowly trailed off into an endless darkness. Any artist's dream.

The bell made itself present once again to signal the beginning of sixth period English as the last bit of people filed into the classroom.

"Good afternoon class!" The teacher, Mrs. Batchelor began. "Get out your copies of The Great Gatsby and today's debate will be based on the topic of Nick Carraway's narration- What was it like? How does it correspond with his character?"

These past couple weeks, the whole class has been reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and when we finished it, we just started doing class discussions for the book. What I like most about the whole deal is that we could start from one topic and then have someone segue into the next. And then people would get so vehement towards their opinion. And then they would get angry as I watch with pure satisfaction, only participating as I truly see fit.

_They got themselves intah this, so Ah'm jus' gonna sit back an' enjoy the show._

"Rogue! Let's hear your insight on the issue, shall we?" Mrs. Batchelor asked.

Coming back to reality, I realized that I hadn't been paying attention, at all, since the first three minutes of the discussion. _Shit._ "Well, Mrs. Batchelor," I said, while looking at the clock. _How did forteh minutes pass without meh noticin'?_

"Asahde from what e'ryone is sayin', Ah believe Nick provahdes good narration. He isn't a biased character an' he doesn't judge those 'round him. Lahke Tom! Nevah once did ya hear Nick call Tom Buchannan a hypocrite or judge him for what he did tah Daisy. An' same for Jay. Sure, Nick could'a told him, 'Hey, Ah'm not gonna help ya. She seems tah beh happeh an' ya can't jus' take that 'way from her,' yet he didn't. Whah? Maybe he's jus' a bad- even terrible- judge'a charactah, but playin' the role of narrator makes that a somewhat good trait."

"Well, well, well, that was very well thought out for someone who wasn't listening," the teacher said with a knowing look and a wink.

All I could do was smile slightly and fight at the oncoming pink that was tinting my cheeks.

"Class, with that said," Mrs. Batchelor gestured at me. "You can all pack up your things and wait for the bell to dismiss you, enjoy your weekend, No homework! And remember that next week will be a short one, due to Thanksgiving.

With that, the bell rang and she gave us a curt wave as she moved to grade papers behind her desk.

Me and everyone else in the class, however, raced to the door and out of the hallway to get the buses and cars. I drove home with Kurt and Kitty, like always and listened as Kitty complained once again about not getting to drive. _Could she blame us though? Las' time we let her drive, she almos' drove us intah a stop sign!_

We made it home in record timing, with no injuries, thanks to my driving. As we were walking in the door, I turned to Kitty and we talked about the shopping trip that we would take tomorrow. Much to my dismay, she was so happy that she gave me a bone-crushing hug and squealed in my ear, as I grunted my goodbye and headed to my room.

"Bon après-midi, chere," a distinct voice made itself present.

"Gambit!" I said with shock and surprise lacing my voice. "Long tahme, no see."

_Oh shit, this is exac'ly what Ah wanted tah 'void. _

"Remy t'inks dat yo' been 'voidin' him, non?" He asked all too knowingly.

"Course not, Gambit," I said with no emotion.

"S'il vous plait, chéri, call moi Remy. Surely, yo' know dis by now," he said while flashing me a charming grin.

"Whadda'ya want Gambit?" I said, completely ignoring his previous statement.

"Une date," he said while stepping closer.

This was surprisingly upfront for him and just different. Usually he only bothered me just for the sake of bothering me. _What is this Cajun up tah?_

I could honestly say that I was caught off guard by this new demeanor of his. "Mah French isn't the best, but did ya jus' ask meh out on a date?"

"Oui chere, dat so hard tah believe?"

_If there is one thing Ah love 'bout Remy, it's definitely a toss-up 'tween his good looks or his southahn sass… Wait, when did Ah start referring tah the Swamp Rat as Remy? Or handsome? Fuckin' hormones need tah jus' go back where they came from! _"Ah don't have tahme for a date. Sorreh," I said, trying to walk away.

Obviously, he didn't seem satisfied with my answer. He stepped in front of me and put the palms of his hands on my shoulders, as I looked up to him with a mixture of shock and anger lingering in my feature.

Shrugging his hands off, I took two steps back and crossed my arms over my chest. "E'ryone has time fo' Remy, chere," he said seductively, even throwing in a wink.

"As temptin' as that sounds, Ah'm busy."

"Que diriez-vous de demain alors?" He asked.

"Can't, hanging out with Kit," I said after registering what he was asking.

"Sunday?" He persisted.

"Ah go tah church on Sundays," I lied.

"Bullshit," he said with a chuckle.

"Is that what ya think?" I challenged.

"Chere, dat's ce que Je sais," he said with a smirk.

"Fahne, Swamp Rat. Coffee an' lunch, on ya. See ya then," I brushed past him, attempting to go to my room, but he grabbed my gloved hand.

He brought my hand up to his lips and pressed a chaste kiss to my knuckles, saying, "Remy can' wait, Rivah Rat," he said and then walked the opposite direction of my room.

All I could do was stand there and hold the hand that his mouth was placed upon as if to protect it from dangers all around.

_Guess Ah got mahself a date on Sunday. _

* * *

After a restless sleep and some breakfast the next morning, Kitty and I were off to the garage.

The weather was somewhat decent outside, so Scott let us borrow his car on the agreement that we wouldn't scratch the paint or anything, as he wisely handed me the keys, much to Kitty's dismay.

As we were walking the hallways to get to the garage, we ran into Piotr. Well, I ran into him, Kitty went straight through.

"OH gosh! Like hi Pete!" Kitty all but shouted as her face and neck turned red from embarrassment.

All I could do in that moment was snicker at her attitude and her failed attempt to glare at me. "Sorreh for runnin' into ya, Pete."

"No apologies needed my friends. Where are you two headed?" He asked with a kind smile plastered on his face.

"Goin' shoppin'. Yayyyy," I said while rolling my eyes.

The big Russian let out a curt chuckle and sent an apologetic look my way.

"Hey Pete, do you like wanna come with us?" Kitty asked, more composed now.

He was obviously caught off guard by her question, but responded with, "Sure, as long as it's okay with Rogue."

Two pairs of eyes turned to me; one set was a pair of doe eyes and the other simply questioning ones. "'S fahne by meh. Ah'm still drivin' though."

"Awesome!" Kitty pretty much squealed.

Both Piotr and I cringed at the sound, but I gave him a reassuring smile. _Hmph, this should beh lahke some sorta initiation for the X-Men._

The ride to the Bayville mall was pretty quiet, except for the radio that could barely be heard over the car's roaring engine. I sat in the driver's seat, while Piotr sat in the passenger seat and Kitty sat in the back twiddling her thumbs. It was a long fifteen minutes, but soon enough we were parked in the mall parking lot and exiting the car.

It didn't take long for Kitty to realize she was home and grabbed mine and Piotr's hands to drag us off to God knows where.

Six stores and five bags later, Piotr and I were sitting outside a dressing room, waiting on Kitty to finish trying on her third dress.

The store we were in was something that I couldn't bear to be seen in. Had it not been for the Russian's company I would either be locked in one of the dressing rooms or somewhere in the food court.

"So, Ah haven't had much tahme tah talk tah ya ovah the past week. How've ya been? E'ryone's treatin' ya alraht?" I attempted to break the silence.

"Ah, yes. You X-Men are very nice people," he said with a smile and a glance at the dressing room. "So I heard about your upcoming date with Remy. Are you excited?"

_Oh, boy, here we go!_

"As excited as Ah can beh," I said with a sigh.

"Well, it was all he was talking about last night. I haven't seen him this happy since he was telling me about his last trip to New Orleans a couple months back," he said, giving me a knowing look.

"Realleh now?" He couldn't get that worked up over a date. It brought a small smile to my face.

Before much else could be said, Kitty came out in a gorgeous red dress. The dress itself was very skin tight at the top with a rather suggestive neckline, accentuating her bust. At her waist, the dress flared out and reached just above the knees. "Kitty, ya look… stunnin'!" I exclaimed.

"Like, I know right?!" She said with excitement in her voice. "But, it's way out of my price range." At that, her face dropped. She wasn't pouting to get what she wanted, she was just genuinely sad and I was sad for her.

_If Ah could pull off a dress lahke that, Ah'd pro'bly beh crushed, too. _

"Kitty, vy posmotrite absolyutno krasivoy," said Piotr in a surprised tone.

"Um, what?" She asked, curiosity getting the better of her.

"I said," he began a little bit quieter as if he was embarrassed. "You look absolutely beautiful."

She turned a new shade of pink and tentatively said, "Th-thank you, Pete, it means a lot."

Piotr stood up quickly and crossed the short distance to her and enclosed one of her hands in both of his gigantic ones. "Please, allow me to buy it for you."

Kitty looked up at him in shock and said, "No-no," she stuttered. "I-I couldn't, it's just a dress, after all."

_She is so smitten with this guy. Ah swear, Ah've nevah known her tah turn down someone else buyin' her clothes 'fore this big ole sweetheart showed up. _

"I insist," he tried with a kind smile and a praising glint to his eye.

"Um, are you sure you don't mind?" She asked truly concerned.

"Of course! Now go and get redressed," he said while letting her hands go and giving her a small push back into the dressing room.

Kitty sent me one last flashing smile before she retreated back into the room to put on her regular clothes.

"Hey," I nudged the Russian. "Ask her out alreadeh, why don'tcha?"

He looked at me with surprise in his eyes, as if he'd been caught peeping. "Oh, please. Ya make it so obvious. Jus' ask her out, she'll say yes, ya know."

"Really?" He asked in a baffled tone.

"Realleh, realleh," I said, offering him a grin as Kitty walked out of the dressing room and handed the dress to Piotr gently as if one of the two would break in half had she not.

After buying the dress, we all exited the store, but not before Kitty gave Piotr a hug, jumping up and wrapping her arms around his neck and whispering a "thank you" into his ear.

_At least somethin' good came outta today. _

* * *

It was nearly nine o'clock when we got home. I didn't know someone could spend all day shopping and getting a quick bite to eat.

When we got back to the Institute, I let them out at the front gates and dropped them off so I could go park the car back in the garage.

As I got out of the car, I could feel a presence lurking in the shadows, but couldn't pin-point just who or what it was, even though I had a fleeting thought of who (or what) it might be.

I got my stuff from the back seat and once again closed the door, but this time, I was "rewarded" with a silhouette that smelled of a hypnotizing aftershave and cigarettes. "Come tah keep a girl company, Swamp Rat?" I asked in a sultry voice.

I turned around to begin walking back to my room with my five bags and came in contact with a hardened chest instead. _This Swamp Rat doesn't even undahrstand the idea of a personal bubble!_

"Désolé, chere. Remy jus' can' seem tah keep une beau fille like yo'self outta his arms" he said while grabbing my upper arms to steady me and smirking. Even in the dark, I can just tell when he's giving me _that_ smirk.

_Gawd, he has such warm hands. Wait, what?_

"Jus' watch where you're goin' next tahme," I said with resignation, making my southern accent thicker than it already was.

"Awww, est Roguey tired?" He asked as he stepped much to close.

"Very," I flatly stated contemplating if I just wanted to drop him on his ass right now.

"Maybe yo' want little ole Remy tah keep yo' company, non?" He persisted, while putting both his hands up against the car near my head. He then whispered huskily in my ear, "'Cause Remy wouldn't min' dat un bit."

Most girls might find this gesture to be creepy and uncomfortable. But I found this uncomfortable in a whole different light- there were butterflies in my stomach and a weird tingling sensation in my womanly core. _"S jus' all so new an' different an' Ah think Ah lahke it_. My legs felt like they were about to give out, but I couldn't let that damn Cajun get what he wanted, so I played along.

Not having any clue as to what I was doing, I slid my hands up his arms and admired the pure muscle underneath his midnight blue sweater. My hands traveled so far as to land on his chest and I drew small, slow, hypnotizing circles on his chest. I whispered in a sensual-sounding voice that made my accent much more prominent, "Remy would lahke that, wouldn't he?"

"Oui, il serait," he leaned in, to where our faces were a mere inch apart.

He leaned in slightly more and I gave him a good, hard shove backwards. Much to my satisfaction, he almost fell. I smirked and said, "Maybe when Remy learns how tah talk lahke a normal person we can talk 'bout keepin' each othah comp'ny. Goddamn Swamp Rat."

I even threw in a wink for good measure to let him know I was only partially kidding.

"Ah, chere, yo' wound Remy," he said in a derisive tone while holding his chest.

"Shit happens. See ya tomorrah, Cajun," I said casually as I blew him a lingering kiss, grabbed the bags of clothing off the hood of the car and sashayed out of the room.

_Well that was exhilarating. An' definitely outta character. But Ah actually lahked it. Ah lahked flirtin' with Rem-Gambit. _I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding and continued down the hallway.

To my surprise, Gambit didn't follow. But I wasn't happy or sad about it.

After what felt like hours and hours of walking, I finally arrived back in my room. _Thank gawd, somethin' familiar!_

I threw my bags near my closet, as I tried to recall buying anything breakable, but overall decided that sleep and relaxation was much more needed at the moment.

I shimmied into a tight-fitting tank top and some long, oversized sweatpants and crawled into bed. I closed my eyes thinking sleep would overcome me, but even after ten minutes it just didn't.

What did come to mind was what was going to happen tomorrow.

_The date. _

_Maybeh it won' beh all that bad, but what if he tries somethin'?_

_Why did Ah even 'gree tah this? Ah mean, do Ah even lahke this guy 'nough tah actually try this? _

_What if it goes well? Will we try it again? Will he expect more?_

_What am Ah even supposed tah wear?!_

_Ugh!_ "Hopefully, all goes well tomorrah."

* * *

**I hope you all enjoyed this lovely little installment! :) If I missed words or have grammatical issues, please inform me! Once again, reviews/follows/favs/ PMs are always welcome in my heart! And could I please just take the time to thank google translate? I mean, without it, this story would be nothing and I would know significantly less French than I already do. Google translate, you are forever my hero. 3**

**Speaking of, here are the new French and Russian translations!**

**French:**

**Bon après-midi- Good afternoon**

**Non- No (form of)**

**Une date- A date**

**Que diriez-vous de demain alors?- How about tomorrow, then?**

**Ce que Je sais- What I know**

**Oui, il serait- Yes, he would**

**Russian:**

**Vy posmotrite absolyutno krasivoy- You look absolutely beautiful**


	7. Chapter 7

**Author's Note: Hello, hello my lovely viewers! So, I actually got to planning for this piece of work and have come to the conclusion that there will be twenty chapters including an epilogue, so... twenty-one chapters, ROUGHLY. I've also decided that this story's going to be mostly fluff and light-hearted goodness, but it's a Romy, so there will be obvious angst. As I said in the first chapter, bear with me. :)**

**Okay, so I feel like I'm going to have issues with ~ahem~ the... smut chapter(s). There's a reason this story is rated M, after all. But, kind of new at this stuff, ya know? Any help with that would be much welcomed! So long as you dismiss the awkward way I said it.**

**So, I think I'm getting better with updating, yeah? At least it didn't take me a full week to get this one out. ;) And even better... Tis the longest chapter so far! :D**

**Also, shout out to all you beautiful people who are sticking with this story. I love waking up in the mornings (or afternoons) and seeing that I have an email saying that I have a new follower or someone reviewed! It brings a smile to my face every single time! :D**

**And now onto the story! Please review and critique and what not! I even added more Kitty/Piotr, which made the chapter significantly longer just for you lovely beings. This chapter's song is another Daughtry from "Break the Spell." Very, light-hearted and adorable and right for this specific chapter. Enjoy! :)**

Chapter 7: Start of Something Good

Rogue POV:

I was lying in bed, appearing to be asleep, but something unnerving was keeping me from reaching my hopes to fall under the influence of unconsciousness.

The weather outside was stormy, but not from the Weather Witch, Ororo. No, this was all too natural. Even in the midnight sky, clouds could be seen, not allowing the moon to cast its icy gleam this late evening. The rain was made very evident due to the ceaseless pitter-pattering on the roof and windows of my room. The wind, thankfully, couldn't be heard over the cacophony of the falling rain, letting me know that rain and wind were not at total war tonight.

I had the dark green comforter pulled up to my chin and was proud to say I was perfectly warm, so what was keeping me from several gracious hours of sleep?

Even with the blanket contentedly wrapped around my slim, but filled out form, a sudden unwanted breeze filled my room, leaving no escape from the cold. I curled myself into the bed once more before giving up and turning over to assess the damage even though my head was still glued to my pillow.

What I saw didn't surprise me in the least bit. Both French doors leading to the balcony were wide open, which wasn't weird. Kitty and I have both been startled awake many times by being careless enough to not lock it at night.

_Ah could'a sworn Ah locked it up, though. Whatevah, pro'bly jus' the wind bein'… wind Ah guess. _

Being the sensible person I am, I threw the blanket from me and stood up. Forgetting how cold it was, I was reminded of my poor choice of clothing consisting of a tank top that barely reached past my navel and boy shorts, exposing whatever glory there was to my legs. Struggling to find my balance- and realizing that I was probably closer to dozing off than I thought I was- I shuffled to the two doors and closed them, listening to the satisfying click of the door and remembering to lock it before heading back to the cozy bed.

Turning around, I came into forceful contact with something solid. Before I even had time to look up, the solid object was steadying me upright. "Should watch where yo're goin', chéri," a thick accent made itself present, with a gravelly chuckle.

"Remy! What're ya doin' here?" I demanded, putting my hands on his chest as to push him away.

He was having none of that because before I could give him a hard shove backwards his larger hands engulfed both of mine.

_Those hands… they're so warm. An' rough 'gainst mah bare skin. So this is what it feels lahke. _

Realization had dawned on me that I wasn't wearing my gloves. And neither was he. "Let go, let go, let go!" I shouted while trying to get out of his firm grip.

"Rogue!" He whisper-shouted. "Look, not'in's happenin'."

For emphasis, he held up our conjoined hands.

_Ah-Ah can touch…?_

The thought didn't last long before Remy had me pinned between him and the wall beside the balcony doors, both of my hands bound by his one above my head.

Finally meeting his eyes, I could see the want, the primal need, the dilating of his pupils that almost made his eyes look entirely pitch black. It was all so arousing. If I didn't know any better, I was most likely giving off the same signs of longing for the undeniably sexy Cajun. But, one of us had to think with our brain and not what was presented clear as day in front of us.

"Remy, we can't-"

Before I could speak another word, his lips were on mine in a passionate, animalistic kiss that had me questioning my morals, no less his. It was so raw and forceful, I almost didn't feel his thigh begin to make its way between my legs, trapping me more so than I already was. A familiar rush of warmth began to make its way down to my core and I realized that there was no coming back from this.

His free hand roamed anywhere and everywhere it could find, finally settling on the apex of my woman-hood, where he began to rub the now soaked cloth of the underwear. I let out a breathy moan and pressed my body flush against his.

He slid his tongue across by lower lip, asking permission to enter. Eagerly, and before I could even think about stopping myself, I opened my mouth as he slid his waiting tongue in tantalizingly slow. Soon, our tongues were fighting for dominance as his one hand was keeping both of mine bound and his other was still rubbing me through the unproductive underwear.

He found a particular spot that I liked and without so much as a second guess, I let out a loud moan and bucked my hips forward.

He then pulled back from me, panting like none other, but managed to keep that damned smirk on his face. I looked up into his eyes and he barely breathed my name before locking his mouth onto my neck, starting from the back of my ear and making his way down to my collar bone he left a trail of wet kisses and nibbles in his wake. All the while, he would breathe my name and French nothings as if I was his one and only focus in this world.

Breathy whispers became outright whispers. Those whispers became increasingly louder and louder until it became a shrill, slightly annoyed-sounding voice which turned into a completely different voice. A girl voice. A voice I recognized none other than…

"Kitty!" I sat up in bed with a start.

_It was all jus' a dream. _

Sadness resonated all too familiarly with me in that moment that it wasn't happening. That it couldn't. _Not lahke Ah wanted tah anyway. _

"Rogue, are you like okay?" Kitty looked at me with confusion set deep within her features.

_No, Ah almost got off tah a dream. A sex dream! With the fuckin' good for nothin', stupid, Goddamned Swamp Rat! Ugh!_

"Yeah, Kit, Ah'm fahne. Jus' a bad dream," I shivered at the white lie.

"Oh, well, alright I guess!" She said, returning to her carefree self.

"Not tah sound- oh Ah dunno- rude or anythin'," I began while trying to rub the sleep out of my eyes. "But what're ya doin' in mah room?"

"Well, something happened this morning," Kitty said as she blushed a few shades of red.

"Are ya goin' tah tell meh or make meh guess…?" I asked slightly annoyed that she wouldn't just get to the point.

And so, her story began.

* * *

Kitty POV

_Mere Hours ago_

Waking up two hours earlier than I had anticipated on a Sunday morning, I ventured my way down to the kitchen. The hallways were dead silent, leading me to believe that only the Professor or Logan might be awake at such an ungodly hour for a house filled with teenagers.

Unconsciously, I was humming quietly to myself a tune that Rogue had showed me several months ago. The Red Hot Chili Peppers was a band that I would never openly admit to liking, but this song specifically caught my eye. It was almost relatable in a sense.

I continued my descent down the hallway and slowly walked down the stairs, enjoying the small echo my humming made throughout the, otherwise, dead silent mansion.

In my mind, the song progressed, reaching the long-awaited chorus, which I began to sing, instead of hum, softly to myself:

_"__Where I go I just don't know,  
I got to, gotta, gotta take it slow.  
When I find my piece of mind,  
I'm gonna give you some of my good time."_

I opened the door to the kitchen, my eyes downcast, while I continued my singing, as I walked to the refrigerator to get some orange juice.

_"__You're so polite indeed,  
Well I got everythi…"_

I stopped short in my tracks to the refrigerator staring into ice blue eyes.

Ice blue eyes that belonged to a certain Russian of my liking drinking coffee and reading the newspaper at the table.

A certain Russian whose top half was naked.

I blushed at the realization that I liked what I was seeing. A lot. I let my eyes roam over the exposed skin. The rippling arm muscles that produced unimaginable strength, even without the metal that I was so used to seeing before he joined the X-Men. I looked at his perfectly shaped abdomen and unintentionally licked my lips ever so slightly, but not enough to draw much attention to myself.

_I'm not so sure I'm hungry for food anymore. Wait, get ahold of yourself, Katherine! He's like the kindest guy in Bayville and you repay his kindness by staring at him like a piece of meat?_

I blushed even harder at my impure thoughts as I looked back up to his face, only to find him blushing just as hard.

"Hiya Pete!" I said trying to break the awkward silence. My voice came out squeakier than I had intended, but would he really notice something as small as that?

An awkward, small smile played on his lips as he said, "Dobroye utro, Kitty. How did you sleep?"

Assuming his Russian phrase was just a greeting, I said, "Slept alright, I guess. Don't like know why I'm up so early, though. What about you?"

"Same as usual, good," he stated not taking his eyes off of my form.

Breaking eye contact, I got out the orange juice and fished out a glass from the cupboard, as my senses came back to me. _How did I miss the smell of coffee? Gah, this could've been avoided!_ "Are you always up this early?"

"Da, it is very… relaxing," he said with a calmness to his voice.

"Oh great, another morning person. Like seriously! How do you people actually _like _waking up so early?" I joked feigning seriousness, but failing as I felt a smile tug at my lips.

He set down his copy of the newspaper, crossed his arms over his chest and starred defiantly at me trying to think of something to say back. He failed and let out a soft chuckle instead. "I take it that you are not fond of the morning?"

"Of course not! Being awake at," I turned to the microwave which held the time. "Six-thirty should be a crime!"

"Oh, Kitty. You never cease to amaze me."

_What was that supposed to mean?_

I stopped drinking my now half empty glass of orange juice and looked at him curiously. Catching on to what he just said himself, he blushed furiously and grabbed the mug of coffee as if to drain away the words he just spoke.

_Is he embarrassed?_

"Are you okay?" It wasn't what I wanted to ask in the long run, but I settled for it anyway.

"Da, but I have something to ask you," he said, setting his mug down with a shaky hand.

_Is he scared of something? Big, tough, ole Colossus? Scared? Hmmm…_

"Yeah?" I asked as I leaned toward him more, eager energy getting the better of me.

"W-would you, um, maybe want t-to go… out? On a date? Sometime?" He stuttered.

_Whoa, a date! With this handsome Russian god?! What girl wouldn't want to go out with him? _

I mentally giggled at the thought, but kept a cool, calm façade. "Piotr, I would love that," I said reaching over to squeeze his hand, letting a smile grace my lips.

_Why did I just grab his hand?! He probably thinks I'm like uber weird now!_

As if reading my mind and anxiety, he squeezed my hand for reassurance and gave me a warm smile. "Wonderful!" He softly exclaimed as he stared into my eyes.

Ice blue and hazel eyes met together and it was as if the earth stood still. A moment forever.

And that moment was abruptly halted when a much too eager Kurt _bamfed_ into the room. Swiftly removing my hand from Piotr's, I resumed drinking my orange juice and he went back to drinking his coffee.

"Guten Morgen, Pete! And Kitty? Why are you up so early?" The fuzzy demon asked curiously.

"Mornin' Kurt! Couldn't sleep, so food and good company was like the next best option," I said, giving Piotr a playful wink and both men a smile.

_Even Kurt gets up early?!_

Accepting the answer, Kurt went and stood at the refrigerator. And he stood there. And he stood there some more.

Piotr and I exchanged slightly annoyed glances at the new silence brought upon them as well as the new guest.

Coming up with a new idea, I sent a smirk Piotr's way that even Gambit would be proud of and said to Kurt's back, "Hey, like why don't let me make you some muffins or pancakes Kurt!"

_Living at the Xavier Institute taught me one thing, if nothing else; embrace that I'm terrible at cooking. _

Kurt's blue tail stilled and his head shot out from within the refrigerator, almost hitting the top of it. "Uhhh, no need Kitty, I-I wasn't even that hungry. I'll just, uhhh, be in my room, ja!"

With that, Kurt bamfed back out of the kitchen.

I looked back at Piotr and saw that he was staring at me in the most confused, yet adorable face I'd ever seen. _Hard to say that him of all people was making an adorable face._ To clarify, I said, "I'm like a really bad cook. Like…terrible."

_That seemed to do the trick. _

His face instantly fell back into the same expression he always held with me. It was a mixture of contentment, wondering, and admiration possibly?

"So, when are you free?" He asked.

And with that, we fell back into easy conversation and planning.

We eventually settled on a day and time as I promised to mark it on my calendar.

After that, I stood to make my way out of the room, hoping to get an early start to the day, now that I had motivation to.

Before I could go, the same Russian voice broke through the comfortable silence and said, "You have a beautiful singing voice, Katya."

I looked back at him and blushed. I tilted my head downwards to hide my embarrassment. _So he did hear me! Oh great._

The faint noise of a chair scraping hard wood pulled me out of my thoughts as Piotr came to stand in front of me. A rough finger softly and affectionately tilted my chin up to look at him. "Do not be ashamed. I am sorry if I upset you, Kitty."

"No!" I said looking into his eyes and trying my very hardest to forget the immense amount of warmth he was emitting, still not wearing a shirt and all. "I-I've just never had someone compliment me on my singing before. And you called me Katya- what does that mean?"

"In my native tongue, it means 'pure,'" he said, while breaking eye contact and his hold on me, much to my dismay.

"I like it," I smiled.

He smiled back and then I left with a stomach full of butterflies and giggles ready to be let out.

* * *

"So, he actually asked ya on a date?" I asked once she finished her overly long story.

_Guy moves fast. _

"Yes!" Kitty all but squealed.

"Ya said ya set a date for… the date? What day's it for?"

"Next Friday! Oh. My. God! I am like so excited, you have no idea, Rogue!" She practically screamed.

"Kit, ya need tah calm down. Don' wanna wear yaself out too quick," I said in a joking manner.

"I'm just so excited, you know?"

"Vaguely," I flatly stated. _Which reminds meh…_

Looking over at the clock, I was displeased to find that it was nearly eleven-fifteen. That only gives me about forty-five minutes to get ready. _Well, shit!_

"Ugh!" I groaned while I flopped back into bed, savoring the last minute of warmth before I had to get up and make myself reasonably presentable.

Mentally going through my clothes, I realized I couldn't find a decent outfit that looked different, nice, and clean. _Ah'm really gonna regret this in a minute, but…_

"Kit? Ah need… help."

She gave me a puzzled look, but who could blame her? I never asked for help. Ever. "With what?"

"Ah have a date in less than an hour," I began as I watched her face contort from previous confusion to something wicked. "An' Ah dunno what tah wear."

At this, she automatically jumped from her place at the foot of the bed, ran to the closet and said with her back turned, "I've been waiting almost two years to hear that from you!"

I snorted at this. _Course she has._

"So, your date. It's with Gambit, right?" She asked all too knowingly.

"How'd ya know?" I asked.

"Well, when I came in here to wake you, ahem, you were kind of," she paused contemplatively. "Moaning his name in your sleep."

"Oh," was the only respond I could give as my cheeks began to heat up.

Realization must've dawned on her because she turned around and was practically jumping and screaming, saying, "Rogue, you dirty bird! You were like having a wet dream about him, weren't you?" She laughed.

I said nothing. My silence was all the answer she needed as she went back to her choosing, still giggling every now and then.

After getting over my embarrassment that my loud-mouth of a best friend now knows about my dream, I walked over to survey the damage that was currently called my closet.

Currently, Kitty stood in the middle of many different discarded clothes. She stood there, concentrating on nothing in particular, but still held a face of concentration, nevertheless.

Suddenly, as if just noticing me, she looked at me incredulously as if I was doing something wrong. "What're you just standing there for? Go get in the shower!"

Too scared to argue with Kathrine Pryde in her state of seriousness, I mock saluted her and said, "Ma'am, yes ma'am."

_Ah needed a nahce, cold showah anyways._

* * *

Five minutes before noon and I was primped and polished 'til I was glowing with pride.

Well, moderately glowing for a simple lunch date on a cool day.

My outfit was simple, but me. Something that I never would've thought to put together. A dark green cashmere sweater lay under a brown leather asymmetrical vest, zipping it up to right below my chest to accentuate my bust. My pants were somewhat of the same matter being skin tight, yet comfortable and warm. To top it all off, Kitty felt it best that I break in the new combat boots I had bought yesterday and I couldn't agree more. They just played as the cherry on top, leading up my calf and right below my knee, making my legs look fuller than they already were.

I thought it best to leave my hair down, not bothering to straighten the natural curls and I only added a little bit of eye liner and lip gloss for makeup.

"You. Look. Amazing!" An excited Kitty said.

"Thanks, Kit. Couldn'ta done it without ya," I said sincerely.

She then pulled me in for a hug that I myself couldn't refuse.

_One change of an outfit an' Ah get all sentimental. This bettah not become daily. _

As much as the hug was welcomed, I still grimaced at the unneeded contact. Still being something I don't think I was ever going to get used to.

"Ready?" She asked

"Readeh as Ah'll evah beh," I said, getting my gloves.

Walking down the hallway, I remembered snippets of last night's dream. _It all seemed so real an' amazing an'… Stop it!_

Before I knew it, I was already halfway down the stairs, my Cajun charmer waiting for me by the main door and might I say, handsome was an understatement. He was wearing a maroon sweater, regular dark blue jeans, and worn combat boots that seemed to go wherever he did. And who could forget the signature trench coat?

Finishing my descent down the steps, I noticed that his eyes were glued to my body, much like mine had been just seconds ago. "Mon Dieu, Rogue," he said while taking my hand and kissing it, savoring the moment. "Vous êtes si belle."

"Merci Monsieur LeBeau," I said with my best French accent.

"Une fille qui peut parler le langage de l'amour? Mus' be Remy's lucky day," he said with a wink.

"Do ya mind if we get a move on with this?" I asked slightly annoyed.

"Impatient, non?" He asked all too knowingly.

"C'mon Swamp Rat, let's get outta here."

"Right behind yo', Roguey," he said.

_Ah'll let it slide jus' this once 'Sides, Ah now have a whole aftahnoon tah make him pay for all the snide innuendoes from this pas' week. _I smirked to myself._ This'll beh a date tah remembah. _

I stopped dead in my tracks realizing that there wasn't a car around. Oh no, sitting in the driveway was a 2010 red and black Harley. Pure sexiness. "Hot damn, Cajun! How'd ya manage a ride lahke this babeh?"

"Etla jeune fille est en motos. What a day!" He exclaimed, happily. "Wanna drive, chéri?" He asked admiringly.

"Ah would love tah, if ya had told meh where exac'ly we're goin'?" I subtly asked, curiosity getting the better of me.

"C'est une surprise," he said with a smirk while getting on the bike, offering me a hand.

Without a word and not taking his hand, I used his shoulders to steady myself as I got on behind him trying to get comfortable. When I stopped moving around, he took that as a sign to be on our way.

Driving passed the gates of the mansion through the little bit of county road before hitting the town scene, I slowly became more accustomed to the atmosphere around me. The only sound heard being the motorcycle's engine, while driving at least twenty over the speed limit. Me, on the back of Remy's bike, my arms wrapped tightly around him, tighter than necessary.

Why?

Because maybe, just maybe, this is something I could get used to. But, I would never admit that out loud. Yet.

It was only a mere thirty minutes before we arrived at the little diner on the outskirts of Bayville. It wasn't what I would expect from Gambit the place seemed relatively classy and authentic. And clean. But definitely not Southern. _Damn._

"When dis Cajun used tah work fo' Ole Bucket head, Remy, Pete, an' St. John would come 'ere. 'Cause God fo'bid our employer feed us," he said.

I only gave a small chuckle as a reply as we entered the cozy restaurant.

"As I live and breathe, Remy LeBeau, is that you?" A middle-aged blonde asked.

"Emily! Still got no life, Je vois," Remy said to, who I assumed to be, Emily.

"C'mere, you trouble maker," she said, pulling him for a hug. As if just noticing me, she smiled and said, "And looky, here! You actually brought a girl, 'stead of those two friends of yours. It's always nice to see a new face around here, what's your name, hun?

"Rogue," I said sticking out my hand politely as she shook it.

"Noooo…" she began looking perplexed. To Remy, she said, "Remy, you dawg! This is the girl, isn't it?"

He reddened at the accusation and said nothing, leading the welcoming waitress to assume she was correct.

"Well, sweetheart, it's very nice to meet you," she said. "Go on and sit wherever you want. I'll be there in just a sec to take your order.

"She's nice," I said as we took a small window booth.

"Oui, da fille was always good tah us. Din't treat Remy an' m' boys any different when all da anti-mutant shit was goin' on," he said with a small smile gracing his perfect face.

A hand came into contact with the back of Remy's head as he jolted forward slightly. "No swearing in my presence, LeBeau!" Emily made herself present once again.

"Christian fille," Remy whispered to me, not entirely quiet, so as to receive a glare from the lovely waitress standing over us.

I couldn't help the giggle that came from me in the moment as Remy looked up at me with a genuine smile on his face. _Ah'm startin' tah lahke this girl._

Can I start you bunch off with some water, tea, soda? What'll it be?"

"I'll take a sweet tea," I said after Remy gestured for me to order first.

"Remy'll 'ave what da fille est havin'," he said with a smirk.

I rolled my eyes. Emily had the same idea and did the same, unbeknownst to me doing it.

"Coming up! Here're your menus," she said cheerfully.

"So, outside, ya said somethin' 'bout a… St. John? Who is he?"

"Pourquoi, chere, yo' don' rec'gnize da name?"

"If Ah did, Ah wouldn't beh askin' ya, Sugah."

"Non? Orange hair, Kinda crazy in da head, fond o' fire… Ring une bell?"

_There is no way that maniac could beh entitled "Saint" in any way possible!_

"Pyro?" I asked in a surprised tone. "Who would'a thought," I mumbled.

The rest of the time before we got our drinks was filled with peaceful silence and menu scanning. Eventually, I ordered a chicken salad and Remy ordered a regular bacon burger. With extra bacon.

_What is it with men an' their meat? Oh God… ew. _

My face reddened at the second meaning behind my thoughts. "E'eryt'ing alright, Roguey?" Remy asked cheekily.

"Just fahne," I said trying to compose myself.

From there on out, conversations became easier as we talked about the past, future dreams, interests, the South, and everything in between. I was actually enjoying myself.

"Honestly, Cajun," I said taking another bite of the delicious salad that was presented to me nearly half an hour ago. "When Ah saw that we were pretty much leavin' Bayville, Ah thought we were goin' on 'nothah road trip tah Louisiana. Bet the weather's warmah than it is here," I said.

"Remy was t'inkin' 'bout, chere. Mais, maybe some ot'er time, non?" He said with a grin.

Looking up from my salad and into his gorgeous eyes, I gave him a small smirk, "Maybeh."

More silence.

Then, "Hey, Rems?" I asked.

He didn't say anything, but looked up from his plate to acknowledge me.

"Why'd ya join the X-Men?" I asked, my eyebrows slightly furrowing.

Sitting back in his seat, he said, "Mags was startin' tah get on mon nerves. Remy's contract was up, so was Pete's, alors pourquoi ne pas? 'Sides, put Bucket Head an' yo' moth- Mystique in da same room an', well, dere's yo' own lil trip tah crazyville tah say da least."

At the mention of my adoptive mother, my once elated mood turned sullen. _It wasn't his fault, but still, that she bitch deserved way more damage than me pushin' her off a cliff. An' somethin' didn't seem rahght with his story, lahke he wasn't tellin' meh the whole truth. _

Remy being Remy, automatically sense my sour mood and tried for something new. "Chere, 'member when we firs' met?" He asked, while rubbing his chin where his stubble lay.

I smiled at the memory. "Ah remembah ya almost blowin' mah hand off an' then hatin' ya for quite some tahme afterwards."

"Aww, Roguey, yo' wound dis Cajun!" He said in mock sadness.

"Wouldn't beh the firs' tahme, Swampy," I said with a smirk.

"Suddenly, Swamp Rat don' seem so bad no mo'e," he said with an award winning smile.

I looked up and smiled at him, a real contented smile, nothing like the ones I give to Jean or Scott, or Kitty and Kurt, or even the smiles I give Logan. It wasn't forced, it was light-hearted. And when Remy rested his hand atop my gloved one, I didn't pull away. There was no need.

It wasn't fully there, but I was beginning to trust this crazy, demon-eyed Cajun. Remy LeBeau was starting to grow on me.

"Ya'll ready for your check?" The light southern accent of Emily piped in.

Embarrassed to be caught letting my guard down, I slipped my hand out of his as he gave the kind woman some money, not even bothering to look at the check and gave her a most generous tip, if I didn't know any better. _Dumb, Cajun. Don' know how tah manage moneh worth shit._

Hope ya'll come back soon! Rogue, it was a pleasure to meet ya, sweetheart," she smiled broadly at me and then turned to Remy. "And you! She's a keeper. Don't screw it up. Give John and Piotr my best. Now on with the both of ya!"

Leaving the diner, both of our faces were red from the words that the petite blonde spoke. It was unnerving that she was so sure of herself, to say the least.

"Remy don' know 'bout ya, chéri, mais J'ai eu un grand temps," he said while grabbing my hand and kissing the glove softly.

Giving him a smile, similar to the one back in the diner, I said, "We should do it 'gain sometahme."

He sat down on the motorcycle and once again offered his hand. This time, I took it and got on behind him. Before letting go of my hand, he gave it a tight, almost reassuring squeeze.

As he started the bike and began to make his way out of the semi-empty parking lot, I held on tight to his abdomen and rested my head against his back, still able to feel a light breeze, even just being clothes apart from what felt like a human furnace.

Unlike coming to the diner, Remy took the ride slow and the actual speed limit as if he was relishing in the peaceful moments just as much as I was. Still, it didn't stop the chilly, impending winter breeze basically begging me to bury my face further into him further. And I did just that.

As expected, he didn't seem to mind one bit. Quite the opposite, it seemed as if he was relaxing into me as well.

I smiled to myself, forgetting the world around me. I could only focus on the roaring of wind mixing with that of the purring engine and the man controlling it.

_This could definitely be the start'a somethin' new. Somethin' good. _

* * *

**Whoop whoop! It is nearly 3:30 a.m. as I sprinkle the finishing touches to this chapter! If you can find the Disney reference in here, I'll give you a puppy (No guarantees)! **

**I am not a big motorcycle fan, so I just decided to go with what my Uncle had. Please do not question my choice of the motorcycle or try to strike up a conversation regarding the topic, because I'll have no idea what the hell you would be saying. ;)**

**Once again, please review/follow/fav or whatever you do! :) With that, here are your translations! Oh! And all phrases/words come from google translate. If there's something wrong with the context of anything, please tell me! I quite enjoy getting language lessons from complete strangers. ;) **

**French:**

**Mon Dieu- My God**

**Vous etes si belle- You are so beautiful**

**Merci Monsieur...- Thank you Mister...**

**Une fille qui peut parler le langage de l'amour- A girl who can speak the language of love**

**Et la juene fille est en motos- And the girl is into motorcycles**

**Je vois- I see**

**...Alors pourquoi ne pas?- ...So why not?**

**J'ai eu un grand temps- I had a great time**

**Russian:**

**Dobroye utro- Good morning**

**Da- Yes**

**German:**

**Guten Morgen- Good morning**

**Ja- Yes**


	8. Chapter 8

**Author's Note: Well, I hope none of you are going to put a hit on me or something. Dang. Even I have to admit, my absence was crazy! I'm so happy to see that you all liked chapter 7. Besides it being the longest, it's probably my favorite so far. :) Got some more reviews and followers... Can I get a hell yeah?! "HELL YEAH" says the audience. **

**Man, oh man! Went to a concert last Sunday. The Mötley Crüe/ Alice Cooper final tour and DAMN. Lot's of fireworks. My ears were ringing for two days after that... Tis where the "Hell yeah" thing came from. ;) And other than that, I really have no excuses for being gone. Guess I've just been too emotionally and physically drained to do much. Summer heat makes me want to do nothing. And it truly sucks. :/**

**Loving all the reviews from you guys so far! No Kitty/Piotr in this chapter, unfortunately. BUT, next chapter is most likely the chapter that's dedicated solely to them. Not quite sure if I should do a smut chapter for them, but if I do, it's probably going to be closure on the topic of them.**

**Also, to Yaz/Yas (your username changed I guess?) I would really appreciate if you PM me after reading this chapter or before. I don't care, really. It's not terribly important and it's nothing bad, I'd just really appreciate it! :)**

**This chapter's song is based off the single for Black Ops 2 by Avenged Sevenfold. Personally, they're one of my favorite bands, not that it matters much.**

**And without further ado, here is your chapter 8! Enjoy and please review, mes amis! :)**

Chapter 8: Carry On

Rogue POV:

Several days have passed and I still can't get that date out of my head. Much less the Cajun who took me.

All night, I toss and turn, unable to get Remy LeBeau out of my head._ Lahke Ah realleh wanted him gone._

I was thinking about him so much, his Psych decided that it was okay to just break free of its prison. He sought fit to narrate my doings. Anything from making snide comments about how unhealthy the food I eat is to making awkward conversation in the shower. But, instead of pushing him to the back of my mind, I got used to the feeling of having him inside my head. It didn't feel as lonely and I knew if I wanted him gone, I could just get Logan's Psych to knock some sense into him.

Speaking of, "Hey Logan," I said with a smile.

Since Sunday, my mood has been more elated for reasons unknown to me. _Wonder why dat could beh, chere._ I could basically feel the smirk being carved into my brain.

Maybe I did have some idea.

_Knock it off Swamp Rat, ya're givin' meh a headache._

_Da's not all Remy can give yo'._

I could practically feel the suggestive tone to his Psych's voice as I blushed and tried to block it out of my head for the time being.

"Stripes," Logan said with an acknowledging nod.

"Ya stickin' 'round today or no?"

Today was Thanksgiving Day. Usually Logan leaves to go off to who-knows-where, like most holidays. Since Logan and I have developed a sort of father-daughter relationship, it's become hard to see him leave sometimes.

Especially when he doesn't have a reason for going.

_Still got moi, Roguey! _

_Don' act so smug, Cajun. Ya ain't even real._

"Got nowhere else to be. 'Sides, someone's gotta keep everyone in line. Chuck's too nice for you lot," he said, while looking at me.

A small smile graced my face as he said this. "Well, Ah'm glad."

"Run along, kiddo 'fore ya get stuck on cooking duty," his tone was serious, but he couldn't fight the betraying gleam in his eyes.

"Who's cookin'? All our 'mastah chefs' are gone this year?"

"No clue, why don'tcha go find out?" He challenged.

"Maybeh Ah will, Logan," I said defiantly.

Not that it's eating me up alive, but why not? You know, see if I could offer my limited services.

Back in Mississippi, I had to do all of the cooking seeing as how Irene was blind.

When I was real little, she would have someone come over and do the cooking for us, so we would only have to heat it up. One day, both Irene and I had decided that I should take basic cooking lessons from her chef, so we could be set forever how long we needed. In the midst of doing so, I learned that I prefer making things from the box rather than homemade. Never could get stuff like that right.

Walking towards the kitchen, I took my time to enjoy the silence surrounding the hallways and corridors. The majority of the students went back home to celebrate with their families, much like what they do for Christmas and the overall holiday season, so it was unnaturally, beautifully quiet for a change.

Basically, all the younger students left and some of the older ones, like Jean, Scott, and Kitty. Surprisingly, Ororo and Mr. McCoy even left to spend time with family and loved ones.

This year, it seemed to be just me, Logan, the Professor, Kurt, Piotr and Remy, even though Kurt was probably going to eat dinner over at Amanda's house. Kind of unsettling knowing that I was the only girl around here for a change, but as before, I would enjoy the silence, even if I only had the weekend.

Walking into the kitchen, I was pleased to smell all the normal Thanksgiving delights ranging from the candied yams to the ever-so present turkey.

The people who were cooking were a completely different story, though. Leaning against the doorway, I took in the presence of Remy LeBeau and Piotr Rasputin moving around the kitchen as if they owned the place.

_They can cook? _

_Yo' should see Remy back 'ome wit Tante Mattie in da kitchen. Now dat be somet'in' else, chere._

Tuning out his voice once again, I watched the real thing. He was like a god in the kitchen, having any and every spice available, but not scattered, pots and pans everywhere, but there was some form of organization.

As if noticing another presence within the room, the demon-eyed man turned around and smirked at my being there. "Well, well, well, ole Pete, Roguey came tah join us!" He said with a cheeky grin.

_An' jus' lahke that, Ah thahnk Ah hate the Cajun 'gain._

S'il vous plaît_, chere. Yo' can' get 'nough of moi._

_Knock it off, LeBeau. _

I must've zoned out pretty bad because he was now standing in front of me as if it was totally okay to just invade my personal space.

_But he jus' smells so good._

Considering, I was now leaning against the wall, there was really nowhere to go. Yet again, I was trapped. "Thought ya were 'bove harassment, LeBeau?"

He gave a rumbling chuckle and said, "Chere, Dere be a lotta t'ings yo' don' know 'bout dis Cajun."

My cheeks reddened and he said nothing more. He backed away as Piotr basically saved the day and said, "Rogue! Are you here to help?"

" There stuff for meh tah do?" I asked right back.

"Plenty," Both men said at the same time, one wearing a wicked smirk, the other a kind smile.

From there on out, it was joking, cooking, and a couple of incidences of an almost food fight. And then the Cajun decided to be stupid.

"Remy, ya need tah calm ya shit. Was jus' a little battah. 'Sides, ya started it!" I defended.

"Mon Dieu, it hit Remy in da eye!" he said, trying to get the dessert batter off his face and eye. "Remy t'inks he ain't gonna make it, chéri."

"No sane man touches anothah woman's ass unannounced. It jus' ain't rahght, Cajun," I said while trying to shake off the oncoming guilt. I grabbed a wet rag and said, "Oh, come 'ere ya big, lazeh dummeh."

Holding his right cheek with my left hand, I used the other hand to clean his left cheek and the corner of his eye where water was beginning to form. "Don' go cryin' on meh, now Remy. Cryin' gets ya nowhere. Course, tha's jus' what mah Mama always-"

I suddenly remembered being a little kid and going to school. I remembered coming home crying because the nasty things they would say about my appearance.

_"__Skunk!"_

_"__Go back to your little skunk hole, ya don't belong here!"_

_"__Why would your mother let ya do that to yourself? It ain't right!"_

I remembered how they always bullied and harassed me. I was only a kid, no kid deserves that from people supposedly deemed worthy enough to be your friends in society's eyes.

I remembered being slightly older and those same kids ended up being strong enough to hold me down and beat me for no reason.

I remembered the questioning stares and nosy people:

_"__Why is your hair like that?"_

_"__Why is your skin so white? We live in the south!"_

I remembered coming home to Mama and crying my eyes out._ "Mama, whah do they have tah beh so mean tah meh?"_

Through all the sniffles and sobbing, she would sooth me and say,_ "Sweetheart, ya gotta tough it out. Don't go crying on me, now. Crying gets you nowhere in life."_

_Life lesson learned_.

I remembered how life became somewhat bearable after that. Sometimes I can still feel the bruises left behind by all those judgmental children- physical and emotional. The pain just doesn't go away.

Coming back from my blast to the past, a distinct French-Southern accent made itself known to me once again. The proximity was a whole other story. I just knew I had to get out of there, now.

"Sorreh, Ah jus'- Ah realized that Ah should pro'bly change intah somethin'… less covahed in food," I lied with a small smile.

Remy gave me a knowing look and let go of my hand. I didn't even realize he was holding my hand. _How was Ah that outta it?_

I walked away from the kitchen and into the safety of my bedroom. The one of two places I could just be me and let down my walls without the questions of others.

I let a few unwanted tears be shed.

One for my childhood.

One for poor Cody and all the other people I've hurt in the past.

One for the pain I'm sure to cause in the future.

One for my frustration over my powers.

And one for all of the people that I had to shut out.

Any tears after that was just pure frustration. It had been such a long time since I've cried. And now, it just feels like I can't stop.

All the anger from Mystique and Mesmero and the whole Apocalypse thing mixed with all of the sadness of the past and that I might not be able to have a future with anybody.

"Whah can't Ah just beh normal? Anythin' **but** bein' 'untouchable'," I complained to myself.

It was nice to just lie in bed, not a thing to do. By now, I'm pretty sure Piotr and Remy have guessed that I just wanted to be left alone for now and thankfully all the tears have pretty much passed.

Looking down at my gloved hands, I realized how much of a burden I truly was. Everyone I cared about- my family- had to be weary of me because what other choice do they have? It only takes one accidental bump of the shoulder or one ungloved handshake to end up passed out or dead.

But that was okay; they were still my family.

There was a knock at my door. "Door's open," I said, while wiping away the remnants of any stray tears.

Looking up, I was surprised to see Logan standing at the door with an awkward look on his face. "Hey, Stripes. Mind if I come in?"

Making room for him on the bed, I gestured to the now empty spot. He sat with his shoulders slumped and his elbows resting on his knees as I watched from my spot at the end of the bed. "Ya come here tah talk or stare at the wall?"

He gave me a small smile and snort of laughter. "Wall's more willing to talk more times than ya are sometimes. What's eating ya up?"

I hesitated. _Did Ah wanna tell him? Ah mean, this is Logan- mah secret would beh safe with him, but still, do Ah wanna burden him with this? Compared tah his past, mine's lahke a scrape tah the knee- not even remotely painful. It'd feel wrong of meh to bitch 'bout mah problems._

"Rogue, 's okay. You can tell me," he said as if he knew exactly what I was thinking.

I let out a deep sigh, buying time to collect my thoughts. "Jus' thinkin' 'bout the past."

At this, he peaked up, as if he was surprised I even said anything. "What about 'the past'?"

"Used tah get picked on an' beat up when Ah was a kid," I started.

After a long pause and a curt laugh he said "Hard to believe that one, Stripes."

Ignoring what he said, I continued. "People would make fun of mah hair callin' meh "Skunk" or "Skunk Head" an' they would pick on meh for bein' so pale, sayin' it wasn't right tah beh that pale down South."

A long pause and a lone tear later, "Mah… Irene- the woman who took care of meh- would always tell meh not tah cry, cryin' gets ya nowhere an' tah always beh strong.

Ah miss her, Logan. Ah miss Mississippi. Ah miss mah old lahfe. Ah miss Cody an' the friends Ah did manage tah make."

At this more tears started falling and a lump in my throat made itself present, as I awaited his answer.

Scooting closer to me, he eventually wrapped his arm around my small frame and brought me in for a side hug. It was gentle enough for me to wiggle out of if need be, but strong to let me know that he was here for me. _Def'nitely outta charactah. For the both of us_. "Why don't ya go back? To visit, that is," he finally says.

And he makes a point. I left things in a mess when I came to Bayville. Maybe it's time for closure.

"Ah dunno, Logan. Ah want… closure, but would it beh worth it?"

"Closure… is closure, kid," he said sadly. "The pain… never really goes away, you just make room for it."

I knew what he was talking about. The first time I absorbed Logan, I was practically traumatized by his memories. They were so broken and cold and overbearing. Every night for two and a half weeks, I would get nightmares about his life, his memories.

"Ya're rahght," I said while hugging him with my one arm. At this, he squeezed a little tighter and I felt less alone. "Ah've nevah realleh… had a fathah figure in mah lahfe, so thanks for bein' a dad… ya know, without bein' a dad an' all."

"Ya're welcome, kid. Just don' go calling me dad and shit like that, 'kay?"

"Wouldn't dream of it, Logan."

"Dinner's pro'bly gonna be in an hour. I'll save ya a seat," he said while getting up and making to leave the room.

Right as he was opening the door, I called out to him, saying, "Logan? How'd ya know Ah needed tah talk?"

He paused, obviously thinking about how to answer this. "Gumbo tol' me that something happened an' that I should see if you were okay."

_What? That was awf'lly nahce of him. Him, of all people, too._

At my silence, Logan left me with my thoughts and shut the door behind him.

At the new information and Logan's absence, I smiled to myself for no reason. It just felt good to smile.

_Dumb Cajun just has tah beh so observant._

_Only fo' yo', __chéri._

At this, I smiled even more and decided to put on some decent clothes and makeup. Seeing as how I'm the only girl in the mansion today, might as well look the part.

* * *

One hour later and true to their promise, dinner was ready for us five remaining housemates. Kurt did end up going over to Amanda's house and he was hoping that this dinner with her family wouldn't go as bad as last.

And now, it was us five sitting at the table, food covering the whole middle area. Professor Xavier sat at the head of the table. Remy by him and Piotr across from me and Logan and we were all waiting for the Professor to say what he needed to say before we could start eating our seemingly delicious meal.

"As sad as I am to not see everyone's faces tonight, I'm so happy that this year can still be spent with those special to us," the Professor looked to all of us with a fatherly smile on his face. "I'm so thankful to have students like you in my life that make up this amazing family that I wouldn't give up for anything. Since laying eyes on each and every one of you, I can tell that you all have greatly changed since first encounters and hope to see that same change for the greater good by those people who look to you for guidance. Thank you all for being wonderful students. Now, I think before we eat-"

Four distinct groans were heard all around the table as the Professor sat with an amused look to his face. "As I was saying, I feel that we should go around the table and say what we're thankful for. Who would like to start?"

Nobody said anything at first. In fact, there was quite a long pause, until a shy voice piped up. "I'm thankful for my family back home in Russia and how St. John went and offered them protection. After my brother died, they were all I had- my mother and sister- and I'm just happy that they're safe for the holidays for a change," said Piotr in a sad, longing tone.

Remy laid a hand on the Russian's shoulder and offered him a kind smile. Something so un-Remy-like. "Remy'll go next, homme," he said and turned to face the rest of us, his face switching back from my face, to Logan's, and then to the Professor's, but ultimately keeping his body facing towards mine. "Remy be t'ankful fo' all da friends he's made ovah da years et all the jolies filles he's met 'long da way. Simple as dat," he said giving me a wink.

Another silence. It was down to me and Logan and I'd be damned if I was going next.

"I'm thankful for a home. Don't remember having one before, so it's… nice to feel welcomed somewhere," the ever-so resilient Wolverine finally said.

_Well, damn. Guess Ah have tah go now. _

All eyes shifted to me, each pair eagerly waiting for what I had to say. "Since ya'll took the good ones," I began and gave them glares. "Ah guess… Ah'm thankful for mah powers. Ah mean, they're a pain tah deal with an' a burden sometimes, but without 'em, Ah wouldn't beh here. With a family. Mah family."

_Hope they're happy with that. Sick an' tired of empathizing for the day._

I received a genuine smile from Logan and a smile from Remy I couldn't quite depict. Maybe adoration? No. Definitely stronger than adoration, I think.

"Professor? Ya should beh the one tah cut the turkey," I said.

In the previous years, it had been Scott and Hank to do it, as the Professor usually just sat back with an elated looked painted across his features.

"Agreed!" Said an excited Piotr.

"If you all insist…" Charles said, as Remy passed him the delicious-looking turkey and a fairly large knife.

From there on out, dinner was all smiles and talking. No food fights included, much to Gambit's dismay.

Whenever Logan or the Professor weren't looking, he would give me a small smile or stick his tongue out at me, like a child would. All I would do was grimace at first. However, each disgusted look I gave him, ended up turning into a small smile at his silliness.

Everything was amazing; the food, the company, the peace.

_Ah wish it all could jus' last. This… this is perfect._

I smiled at nothing in particular as Remy- being Remy- sensed it and smiled back, brushing my foot ever so slightly. I blushed at the contact as his smile turned into an all too easy smirk.

Ignoring his doings, I was surprised to hear the immediate dropping of a utensil. Looking over, I saw Professor X had dropped his fork and was starring off into space, lost in concentration.

Remy laid a hand on his upper arm, softly and said, "Yo' alrigh', mon ami?"

"Yes, Gambit. Fine, sorry to disturb you all," the Professor said as if nothing happened while picking his fork back up to continue eating.

Putting a mouth full of a simple garden salad into his mouth he looked at me. _Rogue, I need to see you after this dinner. _

_Sure, Prof._

I gave him a small smile, as I continued to eat, as if no one had just spoken to me.

Technically no one had. Technically.

"So, who will be doing clean up tonight?" Charles asked after a while of silence.

Knowing Logan would obviously not, I looked to Piotr and Remy with narrowed eyes, only to be met with more glares.

This could turn ugly.

Going for the classic, I touched my pointer finger to my nose and yelled, "Green!"

Immediately following in my tracks, Remy did the same motion, but yelled, "Orange!"

And last but not least, Piotr hastily finished last with the yelling of, "Purple!... Chert poberi!"

Cradling his head between his hands and messing up his hair, I looked at him and felt bad. Kind of. I turned to Logan, but he was already giving me a knowing look. "Ah kinda feel bad 'bout leavin' ole Pete by himself tah clean all this up. Therefore, Ah elect Remy tah help him out!" I said while looking at the bewildered Cajun triumphantly.

"All in favor of Gumbo helping the big guy, hands up!" Logan said raising his hand slightly.

At this I raised my hand as fast as humanly possible.

"Sorry, my friend," I heard Piotr whisper before raising his hand with a smirk.

"Sorry Rems," I said while chuckling.

"Remy cooks fo' yo' people, gives yo' a damn good meal et dis is how yo' repay him?" He asked with feigned shock and sadness.

* * *

Once things were settled, meaning Logan having his evening beer and relaxing for the evening and the two previous Acolytes on kitchen duty, I walked to the Professor's office.

_Come in, Rogue._

Wasn't even closed to knocking and he's already telling me to come in.

"So, ya wanted tah see meh Prof?" I asked a little shyly.

_What could he want meh here for? Did Ah do somethin' wrong? Somethin' bad happen?_

Giving a small laugh, he said, "Rogue, calm down. You're not in trouble. And try not to project your thoughts too loud next time?"

"Sorreh, Professor," I said sheepishly. "What'd ya wanna see meh 'bout, then?"

"I have a theory. For your control."

"Ya mean… over mah- mah powers?" I asked with shock.

"Yes," he stated. "It seems we overlooked something. With this theory of mine, it could take a shorter amount of time for you to learn how to control your mutation. However, it could potentially be the last resource we have. If this doesn't work, then I'm not quite sure what will."

I just stared at him and clumsily found my way to the chair in front of his desk. "Ah could have control," I whispered to myself, looking down at my hands, imagining them ungloved.

"The decision is up to you," he said.

"Yes," it was all I could say in that moment. I have never been this close to some control over my ability before, I couldn't just let this opportunity get passed up. Not when my future was at stake. "Ah'll do it."

* * *

**And yet another chapter finished! WHOOP WHOOP. Once again, review/follow/fav, whatever you crazy people do. :) Hope you all enjoyed!**

**"The pain doesn't go away, you just make room for it." ~Andrea, The Walking Dead. One of the most memorable quotes she said, in my opinion. **

**Not a lot of Romy scenes in this, but I kind of stayed true to my word about the "obvious angst," right? Anyways, here are your translations!**

**French:**

**Et- and **

**Jolies filles- Pretty girls**

**Mon ami- My friend**

**Russian:**

**Chert poberi- God dammit**

**With that, have a lovely day, you beautiful people! And keep it classy. :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**Author's Note: And I am back! Man this week has been somewhat good for me, which is why I was able to write this chapter as fast as I did! I don't know what happened, but I just had so much inspiration for writing this. :) I started really thinking about it and my best friend and I have a relationship close to the one Kitty and Rogue have. Well, she's found her Remy, but I'm still looking for my Piotr. ;)**

**Tis the date chapter! I hope y'all are excited as I was when I was working on it and I'm just so happy with all you beautiful people for sticking with me through this story. Thank you so much. :)**

**New point of view. It's all from Piotr's perspective and boy, he is just freaking out in this chapter and I'm glad that I decided to do it this way. And today's song? Can we get a round of applause for Mr. Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes' Oscar winning song, "(I've Had) The Time of My Life" from the ever so lovely motion picture, Dirty Dancing, which just so happens to be my favorite movie. ;) And you'll see how the song fits in to this chapter. **

**With that, enjoy the chapter and don't forget to leave a review for little ole me! :)**

Chapter 9: I've Had the Time of My Life

Colossus (Piotr) POV:

Last week was quite the week. Well, the last couple of days of it, at least. The Thanksgiving meal with the four other occupants of the Xavier Institute was amazing! Everything was perfect. Well, except for Rogue; one day, she looks like she's going to break down into tears and then the next, she was practically bouncing off the walls, yet she doesn't tell anybody why she was so sad and then so happy the next. It almost reminded me of Kitty.

_Ah, Kitty. _

I smiled at the thought of the petite brunette who came back nearly five days ago. The day she got back- Sunday- she just seemed so elated, but as the week progressed she seemed to get more and more apprehensive.

Compared to her, I was a nervous wreck. I thought asking her out would be the tough part. Oh no, following through was going to be so much harder. And I wasn't quite aware of that until just now- the day before our date.

_My god… what am I gonna do? I haven't been on a date in… I've never even been on a date! Oh, what am I gonna do?_

I was pacing. Well, I was pacing for about the last half hour, but what else can I do? Just sit on the couch and do nothing, like tomorrow wasn't quite possibly going to be the 'make or break' moment for me? Nyet!

Some people are like Gambit- easy-going, laid back, charming. And then, there were people like me- not easy-going, not really laid back and definitely not charming, by all means. And then there were people like Logan who could give less than two fucks about anything, let alone a girlfriend.

I was still pacing when I heard a knock at my door. I stopped. Silence fell over the room and then, "Open up, mon ami."

_Oh thank goodness!_

I walked over, whipped the door open and pulled Gambit inside without a moment's guess as to why he was here right now.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Lighten up on da grip, homme," he said confusedly. "Wha's yo' deal? Yo' usually da firs' one up an' at 'em an' one of da last tah go tah sleep. Wha's been goin' on da pas' couple days?"

"Just… I- I… have…" I stuttered.

_Come to think of it, did I really want his advice? I feel like he would just make fun of me or something…_

"Piotr, out wit' it!"

"My… uh… date… is tomorrow," I said uncomfortable.

_But, he is good when it comes to this stuff…_

"Wit' Roguey's friend, right? So?" He asked.

Now was the time to decide._ Do I want his advice or no? How bad could it be? But what good could it do?_

"Remy," I began. "Could I maybe have some advice?"

I looked up from my, obviously, very interesting feet and found an all-too-familiar smirk, which seemed to speak another language on its own.

_This should be interesting…_

Worrying all week about today and then getting some decent advice last night was just what I needed. Granted, I was still nervous as hell, but not as bad. My hand drifted over my pants to smooth out the denim covering my lower half and felt for the small leather fold over wallet. I took it out of my pocket and checked everything to make sure it was in order.

_"__Firs' t'ing's firs', when we left Bucket Head, yo' brought a driver's license wit' yo', correct?" He asked._

_I didn't remember if I did or not, so I checked the half empty duffel bag that was lying on the couch in my room. I was worried that I didn't, but soon found it at the bottom with other supposedly important paper works and what not. "It's outdated, but yeah."_

_"__Bon," he stated rubbing his stubble. "Rogue says she's jus' une terrible driver… tah quote her, 'Ah wouldn't let her drahve meh e'en if a herd of zombies was chasin' meh,'" He said while trying to intimidate Rogue's thick Southern accent. "Plus, Remy's seen da cat's drivin'. It wasn't pretty. Et yo' pro'bly want yo'__firs' date tah beh somewhat legal."_

_I gave the Cajun charmer a puzzled look. _

_"__Outdated license's better dan none at all, non?"_

I wore a black wool sweater which I regret letting Remy pick out for me, considering I felt like a sweating pig, comfortable denim jeans and shoes that wore the logo 'vans' on the back of the heel.

_"__Casual or formal?" Remy asked as he moved to my dresser in the corner of the room. _

_I cocked my head to the side and furrowed my brows. "Uh, casual. Why?"_

_Before I could respond to what he was doing, he was pulling clothes out of the dresser, making a complete mess out of the area, all the while repeating French words that I didn't quite understand. _

_Walking closer to the busy man, I noticed that he had things separated into three piles, most likely standing for yes, no and maybe._

_Several more strewn clothes later and he claimed to have found the perfect shirt. "For a man, you are very in touch with your feminine side, Remy," I said running my hand over the thick, scratchy feeling long- sleeved shirt. _

_He shrugged to neither confirm nor deny._

_He next started going through my pants, as if he himself owned my belongings when he suddenly stopped moving altogether. He stayed like that for a couple more seconds before realization stuck me that he was going through my pants drawer. "Piotr Rasputin, yo' dog," he said while flashing the box of condoms around like it was an everyday thing._

_My face turned beet red. Nothing could hide my embarrassment. "Oh, you mean the Christmas present you gave me last year?"_

_"__Bein' the 'kind-hearted' person Remy t'ought yo' were, he would'a t'ought yo'__gotten rid of dese by now," he smirked broadly._

And that is why I now have one of those _things _in one of the slots in my wallet. "Jus' in case," he says.

I rolled my eyes.

A small tapping noise came from afar, but got closer and closer, the tapping being small shoes walking down the steps to the foyer, by the door.

I looked up fully and saw Kitty in all her casual beautifulness.

It was forecasted to be a cold evening, so she clearly opted for warmth. _Good._ She wore a white pullover hoodie with a slightly bigger light pink fuzzy jacket over it and jeans that fit every curve of her legs. She also looked to be wearing tan, scrunch up boots that stopped just before her knee.

_So casual. _

_So her._

_So beautiful._

I began to get nervous again, but I tried to at least keep a calm façade that masked my inner turmoil.

_"__Yo' gotta make sure tah keep her comf'table. Firs' dates are gonna beh… eit'er really good or really bad. If da fille feels uncomf'table, den she's gonna shut down an' not beh as open," Remy strategized. _

_I listened transfixed. "But, what about me?"_

_Hope I didn't sound too selfish. _

_"__Yo' stay calm, no matter what. If yo' start freakin' out, she's gonna do da same. T'ink c'est une psychology t'ing," he said matter-of-factly. _

_"…__And if I'm not calm?" I asked._

_"__Yo' jus' gotta look da part, put on a good poker face an' feel whatever da hell yo' wan' on da inside."_

_It almost sounded as if he spoke with remembrance, like this was some form of wisdom he was handing me, which it was. _

"Katya you look beautiful," I said, giving her a broad grin.

A pink blush filled her cheeks as she giggled a little bit, "Thanks, you're, like looking pretty nice yourself."

"Are you ready to go?" I asked.

"Yes!" She said a little too excitedly. "Where are we going anyways?"

"You'll see," I said while giving her a, hopefully, reassuring smile.

I opened the front door and gestured for her to go first, as I hesitantly put a hand against her back to lead her. Looking back into the mansion once more, I saw a pair of red eyes staring at me with a wide smirk beneath them. The demon- eyed man, who I have come to think of as brother winked before I shut the door with a final click.

* * *

Nearly twenty minutes later and we were at the place I intended to take Kitty.

"There's a drive in in Bayville? Like, where's this been hiding!" She said excitedly.

"It's a little outside of town, but nonetheless," I gestured, as we pulled up to the gate. There was a man sitting in a booth, looking like he wished he could be anywhere else. "Sir? Two for tonight's special, please?" I asked.

"Alrighty, that'll be $14.95. Enjoy your movie," he chattered out.

This guy was clearly looking to get a cold, only wearing a long sleeved shirt, no jacket, no hat, no anything. But, I gave him a nod and drove off to find a spot to park at.

It was just nearing dusk when we got there, so there were people already there, but not a lot. I only saw about four cars to my left and three to my right. "I've never been to a drive in before, so where's the best place to park?" I asked, genuinely confused.

"Back home, my friends and I would park off to the side so we could talk and what not," she said elatedly and shrugged, clearly giving me the overall choice.

I looked over at her and she was smiling at me ear to ear and I couldn't help the wide grin that spread across my face as well.

Seeing her gleaming eyes and happy smile, I couldn't help but think that tonight might not be as bad as I was thinking it was going to go. After all, she seems happy. Even comfortable.

"So, like what movie's playing?" she asked.

"I believe it's a late eighties movie called 'Dirty Dancing'? Da," I said.

"What!" She exclaimed. "That's like, my favorite movie!" She squealed.

Man, oh man did I get lucky when I asked Rogue what Kitty's favorite movie was. I remembered seeing the drive in on mine and Gambit's way into town a couple weeks ago and looked at the list of movies they were playing. Apparently, they do certain themes for certain weeks. I guess this week was eighties week or Patrick Swayze week or something.

Had it not been for the amazing convenience, we probably would have just stayed back at the mansion to watch it or take a stroll through the park. Just being with her would do.

"I know," I settled with.

I gave her a smile and she returned it with confusing eyes, but offered a small, bashful smile in return.

"Rogue?" She asked all too knowingly.

"Rogue," I confirmed.

Soon after that, the movie started and we switched between easy conversation and actually watching the movie. At some point during the movie, our hands found each other and stayed clasped, my thumb rubbing soothing circles into her knuckles. "So, they're not even gonna acknowledge the fact that Johnny can be some type of pedophile or rapist? How old is he, anyways?"

She didn't reply at first, but then a smug smile crossed her face. "Piotr, how old are you?"

Come to think of it, my birthday's coming up soon…

"Going to be twenty-four in a couple of weeks," I said after giving it some thought.

"So, you're twenty-three?" She asked.

"Da."

"Could've just said that," she giggled.

I chuckled. "Touché."

A few seconds of comfortable silence passed and then, "Besides, with a body like that, who cares about age?"

Realization struck me hard. Was she talking about me or the actor? I looked at her and opened my mouth to say something, but thought better of it as I saw a look of satisfaction cross her face.

"Katherine Pryde, you're something else," I smiled at her.

"Something good or something bad?" She asked with her eyes downcast.

Much like the morning almost two weeks ago, I gently grabbed her chin so I could look her in the eyes. "Something amazing," I said truthfully.

At this she smiled and made no move to pull out of the grasp.

A song started playing in the background. It sounded like the closing song, but who could be sure? Well, maybe Kitty.

The both of us got caught in each other's gazes, I was so transfixed on her beautiful, warm hazel eyes I almost didn't hear the beginning of the song.

_Now I've had the time of my life  
No I never felt like this before  
Yes I swear it's the truth  
and I owe it all to you_

'Cause I've had the time of my life  
and I owe it all to you

I wasn't staring at her eyes anymore. My eyes moved down to her soft looking lips. Her mouth slightly agape, as if she wasn't aware of it. Feeling guilty, I looked back up to her eyes, only to find hers staring at my mouth.

I tensed ever so slightly, but not enough to break the moment. _Stay cool, stay cool, stay cool._ I could pretty much here Gambit's voice chanting me on.

Now or never.

I inclined my head slowly to hers and watched as she mirrored my actions. I watched as her eyes looked up to mine with the same confirmation I was looking for in hers. I watched as she finally closed her eyes and felt as I did the same the moment our lips touched.

The kiss was not hungry, but passionate. Soft, but not light as a feather. It was perfection.

_Just remember_

You're the one thing

I can't get enough of

So I'll tell you something

This could be love because

I've had the time of my life  
No I never felt this way before  
Yes I swear it's the truth  
And I owe it all to you. 

The kiss ended soon after. For a man like myself, it was hard to admit the 'butterflies' I was feeling in my stomach, but they were there. That's for sure.

After a semi-awkward silence, I said, "Well, that was…"

"Amazing," she finished for me.

I took her hand in mine once again and kissed her knuckles ever so softly, as if any more force would break her and said, "Outstanding."

Happy, content, elated were no words to even begin to describe her state from my point of view. Beautifully amazed was more suiting to say the least.

"Shall we head back home?" I asked kind of sad now.

She sighed and said, "Sure."

I started up the car and put it in drive as the credits started rolling through.

_"__What if… what it everything goes terribly wrong?" I asked while pacing the room again. _

_Remy laid across one of the chairs, both legs dangling off one of the arms of it and groaned loud enough to get his point across. _

_I flopped onto the bed, thinking of every worst possible case scenario. _

_My head was hanging off the edge of the bed, upside down and so was Gambit's on his place in the chair. "Piotr, everyt'in' will beh okay. Remy knows yo' like da fille, an' he also knows da fille likes yo' back. The bot' of yo' are on da same wavelengt', mais yo'__jus' don' quite know it," he said. "Or yo'__jus' too stubborn tah get it t'rough yo' thick skull," he added with a mumble. _

_Being the mature person I am, I narrowed my eyes and threw a nearby pillow at him. When it hit him in the face, he looked baffled that I did it and he sent a glare my way. _

_"__Trust moi, everyt'hing will beh fine. jus' Follow Remy's advice an' don' fuck it up," he said casually, but with conviction laced in his voice._

_I glared at him for using such vulgar language, but appreciated that he was trying rather than giving up on me hours ago._

When we were back on the road, my hand soon found hers once again and gave it a reassuring squeeze. I glanced at her and found that she was smiling at me like there was no tomorrow. "We should, like do this again," she stated.

"Go to the drive in?" I asked.

"No, well, yes. Sure, whatever," she stumbled over her words. "I mean, this. Us."

"I agree," I said as we got closer and closer to home, the smile never leaving my face.

* * *

**Well, how did you lovely people like it? The man to man advice was probably the hardest part for me 'cause I'm not a dude and all, but I hope that it turned out good! :) Once again, Dirty Dancing is my favorite movie, so why not? and that inappropriate phrase Kitty said to Piotr... I had to do a double fist to the air for that one. ;) But hey, Patrick Swayze though. I know he's dead (RIP August 18th, 1952- September 14th, 2009), but still. Just Patrick Swayze. **

**No new translations tonight, so I'll just leave it at that. Don't forget to leave a review... Maybe follow... Maybe decide that you love this story so much, you want to favorite it. Just think about it, guys. Have a lovely rest of your day and keep it classy, mis amigos! :)**


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: Heyyyyyy guyyyyys, long time no see. By the way, sorry for that. :/ It's been pretty hectic at my house and it hasn't given me much time to write at all. First, family comes over, I got myself a brand new used car, finally got my bow, best friend ran away and now she wants to come back, went to the ocean. Quite a busy two weeks, no? Once again, sorry for that and I'm just happy that you all are sticking with me through this.**

**This chapter would've been the halfway point, basically, had I not added more Kitty/ Piotr chapters! :) Since you all love them so much, I decided to add two or three more chapters specifically for them, roughly adding up to twenty-four chapters.**

**Honestly, I'm not particularly proud of this chapter. It's just something I had to get out of the way because I can't continue without it, ya know? It shows a really AU version of Rogue and Remy where Rogue is slightly more distressed and Remy is... being helpful? I don't know how to word it that well (This coming from an author) but you'll know it when you see it.**

**I'm loving all your reviews so far! I've tried getting in touch with some of you and you all seem like lovely people! I just wish I could get in touch with some of the guest reviewers. :( I know that whenever I leave a review for something, it always comes up as a guest because I read stuff off my phone, so... leave a username? :) Also, there was a guest that asked how old our main characters are, so here are their ages and I'm sorry for not clearing this up earlier. Rogue is 18, Remy is 22, Piotr is 23 (as explained) and Kitty is almost 18, but still 17.**

**Alrighty, today's song is by the band that got me in to rock/metal. Shinedown! And well, there's a reason I picked this song for this chapter. It just fits._"It's about having an unattainable dream that maybe the people around you are telling you that you can't accomplish and you're never going to succeed at it, and maybe they're being that way towards you because they didn't go after THEIR dreams. And "Fly From The Inside" is just a metaphor about believing in yourself and going after anything that seems unattainable. You have to at least try for it...because you'll be kicking yourself in the ass if you don't!"_ ~Brent Smith, Lead singer for Shinedown.**

**With that, enjoy the chapter and reviews/favs/follows, and whatever is always welcomed.**

Chapter 10: Fly From the Inside

Rogue POV:

I woke up in a cold sweat. It was another nightmare, but it wasn't mine. They're never mine anymore.

This time, it was Logan's; one of the worst ones. There was just so much poking and prodding and pain. So much pain. It was so unbearable, I could feel myself writhing in said pain even though I was unconscious. Waking up, I was mildly pleased to find myself unscathed, but it didn't do any good to wipe the memory now carved in my brain.

Tonight looked a lot like it did for the past two weeks now. Ever since Professor X told me that I could possibly have full control over my mutation, all these nightmares have been resurfacing as if they were trying to scare me out of the method the Professor is using with me.

Some were petty fears, like of spiders and snakes, that the students had, but then there were those that I just couldn't get over for the rest of the night. Much like tonight's. The last one this bad was coming from Ororo's Psych and her claustrophobia. That night, I woke up and felt as if I couldn't breathe for half an hour.

However, tonight I decided against laying in my own sweat and made my way down to the kitchen for comfort food or something along the lines of it.

There wasn't much lighting the halls of the Xavier Institute. After all, it was nearly three in the morning.

I dragged my feet across the soft carpets of the mansion and slowly made my way down stairs as I attempted to wipe the sleep from my vision. When I made it to the kitchen, I practically made a beeline for the refrigerator to get some chocolate milk, because who could go wrong with chocolate milk? Sipping the drink from a glass, my throat felt significantly less dry than before and I didn't feel as clammy as I did only mere minutes ago. Even so, the memory and fear still radiated within me and I could tell that I wouldn't be going back to sleep anytime soon.

So, I thought. I thought about why I'm putting myself through this personal hell. And I thought of all the good it'll eventually do me.

_"__The decision is up to you," he said. _

_"__Yes, Ah'll do it."_

_"__Rogue," he paused. "You need to understand that this isn't going to be just some walk in the park."_

_I suddenly got curious. _

_"__Whadda ya mean, Prof?" I asked. _

_"__Initially, we need to find the point of origin; where this all started to answer why you can't control your mutation," he said matter-of-factly._

_"__Point of origin?" I asked, still confused to no end. _

_"__We need to find where this all began and go back to when your power first manifested," he said._

_And just like that, the confusion was gone. I now understood what he was trying to tell me. I mean, it could only mean one thing, right? Cody. _

_"__Ya mean… 'bout what happened in Mississippi?" I asked. Just to be specific. _

_"__Yes. We will have to access that part of your brain in order for us to fix the original problem," he stated. _

_"__Well, not tah sound morbidly stupid, but what is the problem, Professor?"_

_"__In the way that your mutation manifested, it seemed to have a traumatic impact on your mental state," he said, informatively, but not as if he was talking to a kid. _

_Yeah, I could definitely see where he was getting at. After Cody, I didn't remember much, except for being a nervous wreck and clearly making a wrong decision or two. _

_"__So, what does that mean tah meh? What do Ah have tah do?" I asked while furrowing my eyebrows. _

_"__It means that," he gave a contemplative pause. "It means that you need to open your mind- you need to take down your walls and make peace with your inner self."_

_"__But, that's what we were alreadeh doin' 'fore? Whah would Ah take down all the walls?"_

_"__Well, it seems that we overlooked the whole Mississippi incident in our sessions and there is a strong possibility that it could be the source of why you can't have full control over the absorption," he said. _

_I looked at him with confusion, clear as day, lacing my features. "So," I began, already dreading the possibility of the truth. "Ah have tah fahnd Cody's Psych an' make peace with it?"_

_"__Basically, yes," he said. "But, I can only assist in finding his Psych, anything beyond that is up to you. Are you sure you want to do this, Rogue? If not, we can still-"_

_"__Ah want this. Please, Ah jus' wanna try," I said pleadingly. _

No matter how much doubt I was carrying and how many questions were now swimming around in my mind, I still wanted this. And I would continue to want this until I got it. I figured, if I can't have this, then I can't move on with my life.

In my moments of spacing out, I realized that I was now finished drinking the chocolate milk and that no one could go wrong with more. Getting up from my slouching position against the counter, I turned around to get the carton out of the fridge and ran into something hard and familiar that made me stumble back a bit while saying something along the lines of "_umph._"

Warm hands found their way to my upper arms as if to steady me and I couldn't fight the tingly feeling that began to fill my chest.

"Remy," I said while giving him a nod in acknowledgement.

"Chere," he drawled, not letting go of me. "Wha's une jolie fille like yo'self doin' up so late?"

"Runnin' a marathon… what does it look lahke, Cajun?" I asked jokingly.

He gave a slight chuckle, something that I think I've come to love since him being here. He then said, "Touché, Roguey, touché. Remy curious, dough, pourquoi yo' up et 'bout dis late at night?"

I could hear the slight worry in his voice and it just made my heart swell a tad bit more. I wasn't used to people caring for me, much less him, seeing as how he was at the top of that list, but maybe I could grow accustomed to it.

What was I supposed to tell him, though? Professor Xavier and I agreed that this new revelation would stay secret for the time being as to not get anyone's hopes up, but it was hard keeping secrets from Remy LeBeau, especially when he was intent on figuring them out. But, as happy as I tell myself I am, I've managed to keep this away from everyone for nearly two weeks now, it's only fair of me to keep it for a while longer.

_So what does that leave meh with? What do Ah tell him?_

"Nightmare, nothin' big," I said, shimmying out of his grasp and to the refrigerator, remembering my salvation.

He sat down at the table and nudged the chair next to him with his foot for me to sit down. "Wanna tell Remy 'bout it?"

I scowled at the thought. _Ah want tah, but Ah shouldn't._ "Not realleh," I said with my eyes downcast. "Ah jus' wanna forget 'bout it," I said a little bit quieter as I sat next to him at the table.

He gently sat his hand on top of my gloved one, looked at me with a certain seriousness- or was it determination?- in his features and said, "Ah'm here fo' yo', Rogue."

I looked at him, really looked at him. I looked passed the mesmerizing red on black orbs and saw more than just pride. I saw pain, sorrow, want.

_Yo' an' Ah; we could write a book 'bout it. Been down the same roads. _

Back then, in New Orleans, I didn't understand what he meant by that, but now it was as clear as sun on a summer day. He's just as broken as I am.

And it hurt.

It hurt so much to know that someone was just as pained and burdened as I was. Because no one should have to endure what I go through on a daily basis.

Curiosity got the best of me and I wondered aloud, "Why're ya up?"

"Why, Remy beh runnin' une marat'on. Ain't it obvious?" He said with a smirk.

That definitely lightened the mood a little bit. Unbeknownst to myself, I was grinning like a fool and the next words out of his mouth were, "Yo' should smile mo'e often. It suits yo'."

"That's hardly a compliment, Cajun," I said while laughing off the embarrassment creeping into my bones. _But it was nahce, nonetheless._

Silence overcame us for a few short seconds, as he looked over me contemplatively. _What is this Cajun up tah?_

Looking at me with calm eyes, he said with, "Alone, yo're une gen'ral sight tah see; attractive on da outside- very attractive," he said with a wink. "Yet beautiful inside. When yo' smile? Mon Dieu chéri, da's une whole ot'er story on its own!"

At this, he inclined his head slightly closer to mine, as I sat transfixed on his beautiful words. Time stopped and everything blurred together. It wasn't two people sitting in the kitchen, a forgotten glass of chocolate milk off to the side somewhere and the hypnotizing tick-tock of the wall clock on the far right wall. No. It was so much less complex, yet more so at the same time.

In the moment, it was just us and that itself brought questions to my head. _What does this mean? Where is this leadin'? Should Ah stop this? Is he goin' tah stop this? What's even happenin'? When did he get so close?_

He began speaking once again. "C'est like une… like une shootin' star, ya know? Dey beh rare, sure, mais when dey make demselves present somet'in' transfixin' an' magical happens," he pause and a meaningful look that carried so much emotion on its own was aimed towards me. "It jus' brings light an' radiance tah da darkest o' nights, mais only some can witness it an' when dey do… when dey do, dey become da luckiest o' dem all. Now how's dat fo' une compliment?"

The whole time he was speaking, I was so enthralled with his words that I didn't know the growing proximity between us. _Where did he learn how tah talk tah a girl so… so… lahke that?! _

Suddenly, I saw how close his face was, only mere inches from mine and I couldn't find it in myself to pull away from the enticing scent of Le Diable Blanc, the mixture of aftershave, typical southern spices and cigarettes.

I couldn't say anything in this moment. Whatever this is between us, right now, I probably would've ruined it with words, but I wasn't willing to back down from a fight. So, I stayed there.

I felt the familiar butterflies begin to make themselves present- the same butterflies I always get whenever I'm around him, the ones that I never seem to get tired of. Or used to.

I could feel his warm, ragged breathe against the corner of my mouth and my cheek and it was somehow calming. I don't know why and maybe I wasn't meant to.

What happened next was a surprise even to myself.

I was willingly pulled into a gentle and slow kiss. It was fascinating and openly welcomed. The butterflies flew faster and harder than before and I saw fireworks of all different colors behind my eye lids.

Alas, as soon as it started, it ended, but the butterflies remained. However, my elated and carefree mood was replaced by something unwanted; fear.

Gasping and whipping my eyes open, I was scared at what could lie before me. A soon to be passed out Remy? A comatose Remy? A dead Remy?

That surprise I mentioned? It comes in right about now because he was none of those things. In fact, his face mirrored mine in surprise. What the hell just happened?

"What the hell jus' happened?" I asked, bewildered. "Ya- ya aren't… But how… This doesn't make any sense. Ah thought the method wasn't workin'," I mumbled to myself.

"Met'od?" He asked.

And, of course, after two weeks, I finally slipped up. Bound to happen, just glad it was with him. I'm glad it happened the way it did.

Groaning loudly, I thought about what to say next. "Can… we go somewhere mo'e… quiet?" I finally settled with.

"Yo' room?" He said while standing up.

"Yeah… yeah," I said, still distracted by what just happened.

When we got to my room and reasonably comfortable, I told him everything from what happened during Thanksgiving, the nightmares and what happened only a day ago. "Then, Ah found his Psych, an' he forgave meh. Ah was so happy, but then when Ah came back, nothin' happened. The Professor said it should'a worked, but it didn't an' Ah'm still getting' nightmares lahke crazy. An' then… what jus' happened downstairs… Ah jus'- Ah- Ah dunno what tah do or what it means…"

Throughout my whole story telling, he remained relatively quiet, only giving slight nods and words of understanding as to not distract me terribly, while lightly holding my hand for moral support. And it helped some. But, not enough seeing as I was freaking out to no end.

"Rogue," he drawled. "Yo' need tah calm down, chéri an' den figure dis out when yo' wake up, alrigh'? C'est been une long night fo' da bot' o' us."

As much as I wanted to disagree with him, I just couldn't find the rationality to do so. The yawns were becoming harder and harder to control and even I could hear the slur in my voice now. Yeah, I was pretty much already half asleep. "Yeah, ya're raght," I said sleepily.

I got into bed and quickly got accustomed to the welcomed warmth of the comforter and fluffiness of the pillows as Remy got up and stretched his back and arms. A faint pop and a groan to follow could be heard at some points and I couldn't resist. I gave a snort or laughter and said, "Ya alrigh' there, ole man?"

He gave me a pointed look, but it soon faded to something more playful. "Dat yo' new nickname fo' moi, Rivah Rat?"

"Not in a million years, Swamp Rat," I said, giving him a tired smirk.

Instead of trying to sass me back, he kissed the top of my head lightly and whispered, "G'night Rogue, sweet dreams."

He made to leave, but I reached out to grab his sleeved forearm. He turned back around half way, so I sat up a little and asked in a small voice, "Stay?"

Under his scrutiny, I felt like a small child again. I don't know what it was! Maybe it was my feelings? My half-asleep mind? Maybe Kitty's Psych? Maybe something more meaningful that I wasn't quite ready to admit?

I'd like to think of it as it being my half asleep brain's fault. In that moment, it was almost unfathomable how much I understood his skepticism, but he gave in.

He actually gave in and I could see it written all over his features and body language. It was relieving, in a way to know that I wouldn't be alone tonight.

He walked to the other side of my bed and climbed in opposite of me, staying on top of the covers because you could never be too cautious, right?

I turned to face him, well more like his chest and watched as he draped an arm over my waist carefully like he was a kid sneaking cookies from the cookie jar. Slowly, he brought me closer to his body and I couldn't fight the want to nuzzle my face into his chest. I felt a timid, but heavy weight being placed on top of my head as his hand began to draw circles across the blanket where my lower back was located.

After getting settled, I decided that I had never felt more comfortable in my own bed than I am right now, in this moment. "G'naght Remy," I said barely above a whisper as I was lulled to sleep by the sound of his constant, reassuring heart beat against my ear and the smell of cigarettes and spices that could fit no one else but him.

When we woke up, we'd go from there, but right now, we both needed the comfort and tranquility of the moment and neither one of us wanted to pass up this wonderful opportunity, not tonight.

* * *

**Alright, you beautiful people! Tell me what you all think of this? Again, I'm so sorry that this took so long to get out, but can't really change that now, can we? I don't think I need to do translations, considering I've used all the phrases in previous chapters.**

**Suggestions and constructive criticism is always welcome, so don't be shy. I wont bite. ;)**

**From here on out, the story's going to go at a faster pace. Just be prepared for that, but I will let you all know how much time has passed between each chapter. With that, I think I'm done here for the day, so keep it classy you beautiful people. :)**


	11. Chapter 11

**Author's Note: So, guess who's in a good mood! :D Don't quite know why, but this chapter took a couple of days to write, but on the positive side, I got the idea, as a whole, immediately after finishing the last chapter! **

**It was so weird! This chapter has so many different emotions in it and I'm really happy with how it turned out, but holy crap! It was emotionally draining, to say the least. This chapter's song is by a Finnish metal band by the name of Apocalyptica. This song specifically features the lead singer of Shinedown, Brent Smith, though. **

**With that, have fun reading the chapter and I hope to hear from you beautiful people soon! :)**

Chapter 11: Not Strong Enough

Rogue POV:

I awoke with a start. My eyes shot open and I felt my whole body twitch with adrenaline at…

_It's alreadeh eleven?! Dammit! So much for getting' an earleh start tah mah day. _

Usually, I don't wake up so violently, but then again, the temperature isn't usually scalding hot on one side of the room and freezing cold on the other.

During the final days of fall and beginning of winter, I'm pretty much used to the freezing temperatures, mostly because I'm dumb enough to not close the window half of the time. During those days and even when I'd use at least two comforters to chase away the cold, I had never been this warm before.

Well, the back of me had never been this warm before.

Becoming more alert, I now felt a dead weight- strong and big enough to be an arm- draped across my pelvis and slow, steady, warm breathing against my ear and neck.

_Oh, no. Please, tell meh it's not…_

Turning around, I confirmed my worst fears. Remy LeBeau was in my bed. Under the warm covers. With me pressed tightly against his chest.

_At least we're both wearin' a satisfactory 'mount of clothes. _

Well,this might be the only time I get a good look at him while he's asleep. As creepy as it sounds, why not take that chance? What do I have better to do? It's a Saturday morning, Danger Room sessions don't start until late afternoon and I don't have prior engagements.

Remembering the events that transpired last night, I decided that I wasn't quite looking forward to telling Professor X about my progress. In any other circumstance, I would've run to him, my curiosity and thoughts fully in tow, but now? How do I explain this? _Oh, hey Prof! Yeah, Gambit kissed meh last naght, an' Ah didn't stop 'im even though Ah could'a potentially killed 'im. Hormones, am Ah raght? _

Whatever happened last night, was it a revelation or the mere beginning of something dangerous? More importantly, why am I rooting for the second option? And why did all my thoughts travel back to the peacefully sleeping Cajun who was in my bed? Probably, because there was a peacefully sleeping Cajun in my bed.

_One question down, 'bout a million more tah go!_

Instead of trying to decipher the never-ending puzzle of my life, I let it all go for a moment and just stared at Remy. Much like the few weeks ago in the Med Bay, he looked content. Well, content was an understatement. Happy, elated, radiant even.

You know when women tell pregnant women that they're "glowing" to make them feel better? I swear, I could see that same hypothetical glow surrounding Remy in this moment, not that he needed a confidence boost, but he was beautiful- awake and asleep. He knew it. Reluctantly, I knew it. And I think just about everyone else knew it as well.

But, those people seem to confuse the definition of beautiful with lustful. From far away, you could take one look at him and say, "he's pretty good looking" and then be up close and say, "he's perfection." However, he's anything but perfection. _At the risk of soundin' cliché, he's perfectly imperfect. _

His demonic eyes that made girls fall head over heels for him were filled with the pain of the past. Some say that eyes are the windows of the souls. If that were true, than he has a very dark one, but every now and then, I'd see that delighted, contentedness twinkle in his eyes, which eased my worries ever so slightly.

His shaggy auburn hair that contrasted with his skin wonderfully got in his eyes during battle- especially now that he's grown it out more- sometimes costing him his pride and sometimes resulting in a few extra cuts and bruises.

His lightly tanned skin that brought girls to their mercy was covered in a blanket of scars inside and out- emotionally and physically.

Yes, Remy LeBeau isn't perfect, but he hides those imperfections very well. But, that was okay with me.

_Okay, 's time tah get up an' more importantly, he needs tah wake up an' leave. _

It was so hard to wake him up, considering he looked so peaceful, but it had to be done.

I didn't trust my own voice to be able to yell at him, so I shyly tapped him on the shoulder. _Yeah, of course __**that**__ was gonna work. Gonna need a little more force than that._

I shoved him a little harder and he still didn't budge. _Good lord!_ I made an exasperated noise and grabbed my gloves. I knew exactly what would wake him up. If this didn't work, I was going to yell at him. That was for sure.

After putting my gloves on, I tried distancing myself as far away from him as possible in the moment carefully and quietly lifted my hand towards his face. Instead of moving it to his cheek, I flicked his nose as hard as possible and watched as his eyes flew open and took in his surroundings, which I found slightly strange. _Must beh a thief thing._

As his sleepy eyes landed on me, his features softened, but there was still a look of confusion hidden in his eyes as he took in our precarious positions. Being the charmer he is, he played it off well. "Bonjour, chéri. Et might Remy jus' add dat yo' are un ange du matin," he smirked.

"Dually noted," I said flatly.

"Someone wake up on da wrong side of da bed? He cheekily asked.

_Oh gawd, a mornin' person!_

"Actually, yeah. Ya're on mah side," I said truthfully while trying to repress the snicker forming in my throat. "Doesn't excuse the fact that ya're in mah bed, though. Sooooo, get out!" I said, giving him a little shove.

"Doesn't leave much time tah talk 'bout us, non?"

_That's the point. _

"Maybe some othah time? Ah got stuff tah do," I lied.

"C'est drôle," he sleepily said. "Yo' do dis t'ing when yo' lyin'; c'est like une polygraph. Yo' emotions spike. Well… et yo' start twiddlin' yo' t'umbs."

I looked down and found myself to be caught in the act. _So much for that._ Just goes to show that trying to hide some from an empath or a telepath was pretty difficult. _Only adds tah mah list of who Ah should beh careful 'round. More so, mah thoughts. God knows those've been outta whack lately. _I sighed. "What's there tah talk 'bout?" _Guess we're doin' this now._

He gave me a pointed look, but it wasn't of annoyance or frustration. It looked more like… amusement?

"Well, Remy could t'ink of one t'ing," he said while licking his lips rather seductively.

And then it really hit me; I wasn't mad at him, I was furious. I almost punched him right then and there had it not been for what little self-control I had left. "Ya goddamned fool!"

"Que?" He asked, genuinely confused.

I ripped the covers off of me and basically tumbled out of bed. I began pacing the room to calm my nerves, but I couldn't. It just wouldn't help, so I opted for sitting back down at the foot of the bed, all the while he never made a move to comfort nor leave me.

I rested my hands over both of my eyes and took a few deep breaths before speaking. "Ya idiot, how could ya kiss meh?" I asked in a whisper, not looking up from my hands.

_How could Ah let 'im kiss meh? How could Ah not stop it?_

And then I realized something. I wasn't mad at him, well, not entirely. I was enraged with myself for such reckless behavior. "Parce que je voulais," he sternly said while moving closer to me.

My French was a tad rusty, so the subject-verb agreement, conjugations and what not threw me off, but I definitely caught a form of "want" in there somewhere. "It doesn't matter! Somethin' could'a happened- ya could'a been hurt. Ah could'a hurt ya!" I paused to let that sink in. With tears brimming my eyes, I finally looked at him and found him to be close, but far enough away for me to feel some sort of comfort in the distance between us. "Remy, Ah could'a hurt you… an' Ah wouldn't beh able tah live with myself if- if Ah did that. Remy, Ah care 'bout ya, an'…"

I couldn't find it in myself to say anything else in fear of several things:

The fact that I just said I cared for him.

His reaction to my revelation.

And how badly I wanted to cry.

"Désolé, Rogue. Ah'm so sorry," he said comfortingly, while wrapping his arms around me and bringing me into his chest.

I didn't fight it. In fact, I pretty much almost knocked him onto his back with my body as I quickly got adjusted into his embrace. I let the tears silently fall onto his shirt and didn't bother to wipe them away. He began whispering French and English- but mostly French- nothings into my ear and kissed my hair a few times until I was calmed down enough, which took a few minutes. I understood nearly nothing of the French he was speaking to me mostly because I hadn't tapped into his Psych for that ability, but it was the most reassuring thing I've heard in nearly two weeks.

"Remy cares fo' yo' too," he finally said.

Scratch that, second most reassuring thing, even though it was said in third person.

Giving a laugh that held no humor, I said, "Ya're not jus' tryin' tah appease the mess of a girl in ya arms, raght?"

"Would Remy lie tah yo'?" He asked matter-of-factly.

"N'Awlins ring a bell?" I asked jokingly.

He, however, didn't take it so lightly. "Ah did some pretty horrible t'ings in mon passé et regret dem terribly sometimes, mais c'est somet'ing yo' gotta move on from or it'll consume yo'."

I realized the potential idea that he could be talking about more than just himself and understood just how alike we really are. After a few seconds of anticipated silence, he looked further into my eyes and said, "Je veux être un homme bon… et… ev'ry minute Ah spend here- avec vous- Ah don' dwell on da past. No, Remy sees da potential future. Avec vous."

I was rendered speechless. What does a girl say to that, exactly? I was about to ask why, but he held up his hand and I obeyed. He wasn't finished talking. "Et, dis," he said, motioning between us. "Isn't wort' givin' up. Ah don' care how 'fraid yo' t'ink yo' are, Remy LeBeau will not give up on yo'."

I looked at him. And he looked at me. And then I did the worst possible thing I could have possibly done in the moment. I cracked a joke. "Ah thought guys were always supposed tah beh the ones tah beh afraid of commitment? Not the girls."

This time, he took my humor light-heartedly and said, "Chere, yo' got Remy shakin' in his shoes."

We laughed together. It was a much needed laugh that lightened the mood a little, but one question still remained on my mind. "Hey Rems? What are we?"

It was the question we'd both been anticipating for, I could see it in his eyes. So settle, yet it could make or break whatever we have right here, right now. Anxiety and curiosity filled me. Even though I tried to push it away, I knew he could feel my insecurities boil over slightly. "Chéri, whatev'r option gives moi da chance tah kiss yo' whenev'r Ah please est fine wit' moi," he said with a grin.

"So, a relationship?" I asked timidly, because really? I wouldn't mind being kissed by this handsome Cajun every day.

"Une relation, oui," he said as his grin only maximized.

"Good," I said after a few quiet seconds.

"Bon," he repeated in French.

"Yep…"

"Oui."

"Get out," I broke the system we had going on.

"Pourquoi?" He asked, a little sassy-like.

"Sugah, do ya realleh wanna find out the consequences of sneakin' into someone else's- 'specially a girl's- room here?"

He just gave an odd, confused look.

I rolled my eyes because the answer really wasn't all that hard to decipher. "From Logan?" I simply said.

I practically saw the gears turning in his head as realization came rushing to him. He jumped out off of the bed, me slowly in tow, and peered out the French doors to make sure no one was around so he could sneak back into his own room.

The other question I had been dying to ask slipped out before I had time to stop myself. "Will ya come see the Professor with meh latah? Ah kinda need tah tell 'im what happened with mah mutation an' Ah'd 'ppreciate the support… Ah mean, ya don' have tah come with if ya don' wanna, but-"

I was silenced by a small kiss, slow and gentle, much like last night's but longer. I smiled into the kiss at his risky behavior and the current lack of my mutation.

The kiss was everything I could've asked for after the last ten hours. It was warm and welcoming, but something I could still back out of if needed. His lips were soft against mine and we moved together as one, like we'd known how to do this with each other for as long as we lived. Funny to think, considering this was technically only my second kiss. Everything was just so natural, thoug, that I almost felt lost for a moment when he retracted his mouth from mine. "Remy's dere fo' yo', Rogue," he smiled.

I gave him a small smile of my own and watched as he made his exit through the open doors and to his own room with amazing stealth and agility, hardly making any noise at all.

My mind traveled back to the second grade about the time when we were learning about making choices, good and bad. I remembered how the teacher asked us to make a list of the good and bad choices we made over the week and to reflect with a parent, guardian, teacher, or whoever those choices. I remembered how my list had consisted mostly of good things one week and mostly bad the next.

Right now? To say the very least, I was conflicted. I couldn't decide if this was a good or bad choice. My heart was telling me it was good- probably the best decision I've ever made- but my head didn't quite agree. My head was definitely weary of Remy and I, but decided to let it play out the way it should. _Good._

* * *

Gambit POV:

A week before Christmas:

"Piotr," I proudly said. "Dis year's gonna beh diff'rent."

"Da?" He said questioningly.

"T'ink 'bout it! We ain't jus' shoppin' fo' ourselves this year. We got ourselves two lovely ladies tah look out fo'," I smiled.

I was so happy that I don't think I had ever been this happy before. Physically and mentally, I was at my peak. In the past two weeks, I had only had half a bottle of rum and dramatically cut back on my smoking, but not as much as the drinking. I was so pleasantly surprised at how much money it was saving me, why not buy my lucky lady something for the holidays?

Between us, everything seemed to be going good. We were taking things relatively fast, all things considered, but she wanted to know what she was missing. Especially after finding out that she basically had full control over her absorption. She was so happy when we talked to the Professor and I couldn't help but feel the same for her. Her good mood that day was just too contagious to pass up!

For the most part, we decided to keep things under the radar until we figured out how to tell Logan, because- let's be honest- that's going to be the biggest conquest to overcome.

But that all went to shit when Kitty somehow found out and told nearly everyone else. So, today's excuse for avoiding the Wolverine was to go Christmas shopping.

The only good thing that came out of Kitty being Piotr's girlfriend- no matter how much he confirms nor denies it- was that she could be kind of a loud mouth and she gave me a faint idea of what Rogue would want for the holidays. Granted, the information she gave me was vague, but it was better than me doing something half-assed.

It's been nearly five hours since we left, one hour spent driving and the other four looking through every antique store along the way and I couldn't find the perfect gift.

In the second or third store we ended up at, Piotr claimed to have found the perfect gift for Miss Katherine Pryde and I couldn't decide if I completely agreed with him or if he was one crazy son of a bitch for getting her what he did. And I got the "pleasure" of hearing the story behind it.

Apparently, it all started with them watching this really weird-sounding movie called "Sucker Punch" and then something about her being so enthralled with the weaponry, especially the katanas used.

As a result, the big Russian bought her a Tachi Koshirae styled katana. Now, I wasn't quite comfortable with someone her weight and overall petite size wielding such a sword, but ole Petey seemed to know how to handle it and whose hands he was putting it in. Besides, at least Kitty Pryde wasn't anything crazy like that Wade Wilson character I've heard extensive stories- good and bad- about.

Now here we were, in an older part of Bayville that looked slightly like New Orleans on a quiet day. Seeing as how I was driving Scott's '69 red mustang, I made a quick decision and pulled up to the curb in front of a little burger joint that looked decent enough for an early dinner.

Putting the car in park and unbuckling my seat belt, I beckoned him to do the same and said, "Dinner's on Remy ce soir."

That thing I said about having a lot of extra money? Well, I wasn't lying. If anything, I could definitely afford this.

"If you insist," he said a little unsurely.

Once we got seated and ordered our drinks and food, he was the first to strike up a conversation, much to my surprise. "So, you and Rogue?" He asked with a knowing look.

Over the past two weeks between me and Rogue, hiding from Wolvie and Danger Room sessions, Piotr and I haven't had much time to talk, much less discuss our love lives. Today was a good day for that and I could say I genuinely missed hanging out with the Russian. After so long of it just being us and St. John, it was weird not seeing them every hour or so.

"What of it?" I smirked.

"I knew you could do it," he stated. "Took you long enough, might I add," he mumbled.

In response, I gave him a confused look. _What's dat s'posed tah mean?_

As if reading my mind, he said, "I am not stupid, Remy. I see the way that you look at her," Quieter, "I get that same look around my Katya."

A small smile graced my face. I was so happy that he was able to find that special someone in his life, yet he spoke as if he had years and years of this girl behind him. I mean, how could I not be happy for someone who treated me as a friend- a brother?

Thoughts of my own adoptive brother, Henri, came to mind. _Ah wonder how he is… Et Mercy! Has it really only been une few mont's since Ah've seen 'em last? Feels like years 'ave gone by…_

The last time I saw him was the last time I was in New Orleans. The last time I was in New Orleans was the first realization that I was falling for the sad, closed-off young girl and I told my brother everything. All the while he just listened.

_"__So, da fille jus' went back, den?" He asked. _

_"__Oui, c'est where she b'longs," I said while taking a long drag from my cigarette. I blew out little ringlets of smoke and watched as they disappeared into thin air. After the fourth one, I looked back to Henri only to find him smiling at me. It wasn't a creepy smile, just… unsettling. "Que?" I asked defensively. _

_Shaking his head slightly and laughing, he put out his cigarette in the ash tray and said, "Not'in', mon frère. Yo'll figure it out when da time comes."_

_There were some times where I wished Henri to be my father instead of Jean-Luc, not that I treated him as so, but then there were times when Henri would just say stuff like that that just confused me and pissed me off._

Note to self:

Thank Henri soon.

I now see what he was talking about all those months ago. Many months after, I tried to repress what he said, but the thought would always play back in my mind, like a broken record and now I knew why. Seeing that same smile on Piotr's face only minutes ago was just a sheer reminder of how stupid I had been for so long. It was such a reminder.

_Je suis tellement stupide. _

"What're you smiling about?"

"Not'in', homme," I said.

After finishing a delicious, very unhealthy meal of greased up bacon burgers and steak fries, we decided to walk to the next store seeing as how it was just right across the street.

Walking into the little shop, I was surprised to find that there was a lot of stuff, and I mean a lot, for just this one little space.

Piotr went off somewhere to examine art supplies or paintings or whatever. I wasn't paying much attention, sue me! I was just so enthralled with all of the knick-knacks lining the walls or covered by other knick knacks.

So many knick knacks.

My phone buzzed from my pocket, suddenly. I took it out and was elated to see Rogue's name and a picture of her angry face trying to hide away from the camera light the small screen up to tell me that she sent a text.

**You coming home any time soon? Or did you just decide to skip town without me? ;(**

**Depends… Logan still trying to hunt me down? O.o**

**Nah, he gave up a while ago. Man's gotta eat sometime. :P Btw, bring me some food? Kitty's cooking tonight .-.**

**Sure, thing. We should be back soon…ish. How does a greasy burger and soggy fries sound? XD**

**Sounds just as lovely as you mentioned it!**

**Why thank you doll face. Should be back soon, then you can have me all to yourself. ;)**

**Whatever, hot stuff. xP Drive safe!**

We didn't text often, but it usually looked a lot like this and it just gave me the jitters. Well, the good kind, if there is a good kind.

Jitters is better than butterflies, so I'll just go with it.

It was like Rogue brought out the inner horny teenager in me, but even more so, it felt like she was giving me my youth back.

In New Orleans, my life revolved around the "family business" and my so-called destiny to marry Bella Donna and unite the guilds. So much for that.

But with my beautiful Rogue, it was like she brought back all the things I missed out on. Sure, it was weird to act so immature sometimes, but it felt natural almost.

Coming back from my reverie, I was surprised to have roamed to the far right corner of the store. It was simple, but had this organized mess to it. It mostly consisted of jewelry, like necklaces, bracelets and rings of any sort.

Some were thick, others thin. Some heavy, others light as a feather. Hell, some of the things were feathers! Some of the jewelry was modern and other pieces looked like it was from Great Britain during the seventeenth century.

Past that, I saw it. The utmost perfect Christmas present. I gently grabbed it, because it wouldn't do me any good if I broke it before I even bought it. Examining it, I was pleased to find that it was indeed the most perfect thing a guy could get a girl for Christmas. It was simple, yet elegant. Something definitely old, but well-kept to look somewhat new.

Price was no issue of the matter because no matter what, I would get this for her.

After making the necessary purchase, Piotr and I left with smiles on our faces as we wasted no time in getting to the car and driving home.

"She'll love it," he simply said as we neared the mansion's gates.

"Remy hopes so, homme," I said. "Remy hopes so."

* * *

**Voila! (I really hope I spelled that right) Say you guys liked the chapter... maybe leave a review? :) I quite enjoy hearing feedback from all you lovely people every once in awhile. And ya know what? I'm not even ashamed that I'm a tad bit hungry for a burger right now. With that, here are your translations! Besides that, have a lovely day and keep it classy! **

**French Translations:**

**Un ange du matin- An angel in the morning**

**C'est drôle- It's funny**

**Que- What**

**Parce que Je voulais- Because I wanted to**

**Mon passé- My past**

**Je veux être un homme bon- I want to be a good man**

**Avec vous- With you**

**Une relation- A relationship**

**Ce soir- Tonight**

**Mon frère- My brother**

**Je suis tellement stupide- I am so stupid**


	12. Chapter 12

**Author's Note: WOOWEE this turned out to be quite the lovely chapter. Very happy and merry and crap and also very... rated M ;) Tis why it took so long. Today's chapter title comes from the lovely band of Mötley Crüe! If you haven't heard the song, I strongly encourage you to listen to it and if you like it, check out the other songs! :)**

**With that, enjoy chapter 12 (the halfway point) and don't forget to review/favorite/ follow and all that loveliness that readers sometimes do! :)**

Chapter 12: Live Wire

Rogue POV:

Christmas Eve:

Life's pretty amazing right now. I mean, first, the Professor and I both confirmed that I have next to full control over my mutation and then I somehow end up in a relationship with a freaking god and now? It's Christmas Eve!

As a child, Christmas was my most favorite time of the year. Everyone and everything was just surrounded in a happy aura and it seemed that no one could puncture my little bubble of happiness. Of course, Irene wasn't filthy rich, but she sure as hell wasn't dirt poor, either.

I never believed in Santa Clause as a child, so when I was living with Irene, I was convinced that she was some sort of superhero. Seeing how she was blind, I didn't have a clue as to how she got Christmas shopping done, but nevertheless it got done.

At age eight, I finally discovered that she had a personal shopper, which ruined the fill-in Santa idea for me, but Christmas wasn't just about the presents for me.

Coming to the Institute was something different, for sure. When Christmas came around over here, the teachers- meaning Logan, the Professor, Mr. McCoy, and Ororo- usually chipped in to buy something for the students. The good thing, though, was that each student got their own unique present and not just a transgender friendly gift that everyone else got.

Last year's was the promise of new rooms and having the option of whether we wanted to share them or not. Of course, I opted for my own room had to have an extensive conversation with Kitty that it wasn't her fault that I wanted my own space and blah, blah, blah.

Besides getting that one gift, if we chose to, we could buy things for other students, so long as we had the money to do so. Usually, the only people I worried about giving gifts to were Logan, Kitty and Kurt, which were the only people who really gave me something in return, but now I had someone new to worry about.

A couple of days ago, I was able to get up the nerve to pick up Remy's present, but now I'm not so sure. _What if he doesn't lahke it?_

On my part, it was a risky idea, but why not? As much as I want to slap him silly sometimes with his stupid innuendoes and public displays of affection, he makes me happy. Genuinely happy. I saw it, he saw it, and as much as Logan wants to admit otherwise, he sees it. This probably explains why he hasn't killed the poor Cajun yet.

_Speakin' of…_

"Merry Christmas, Logan!" I said with a smile and a one-armed hug.

"You too, kid," he said in all his "merry" gruffness.

Something about him calling me "kid" just felt good… right, even.

"Stickin' 'round this year?" I asked, hopeful.

"Leavin' early tomorrow, but I'm here tonight. 'Sides, I couldn't go without givin' ya your present, now could I?" He asked with a smile.

I began to get giddy. I mean, Logan didn't just give out presents like an everyday thing, so what he did give usually meant something. Well, it did for me. Perhaps I just put too much thought into it?

"Garage?" He asked.

"Sure, lead the way," I happily said.

Hopefully, the garage wouldn't be as packed as the Rec Room. Granted the party wasn't in there, but you could never be too certain with a school full of mutants.

When we finally got there, he went over to his little workshop area that held all of his tools and all his manly stuff that girls like Kitty or Jean could care less about.

Unceremoniously, this became our spot.

When I first joined the X-Men, I wasn't welcomed as warmly as some of the others were, so I would just meander around and familiarize myself with the mansion. Of course, I got lost and made my way down here, but now I'm glad it happened.

_Whoa, haven't been in here yet…_

_I had been walking around and somehow stumbled upon this area of Professor Xavier's mansion. Better getting lost than sitting in my room getting acquainted with the pure definition of annoying. _

_I rolled my eyes at the one they called "Kitty." She's somethin' else, that's for sure. _

_Walking further into the garage, I saw just how big it really was and let out a low whistle of appreciation. The spacious area had everything a garage could possibly consist of ranging, simply, from a line of cars to at least two work benches lining the walls. _

_I took a second to admire the cars parked in the middle of the garage. Scott's mustang was a beauty given it being a mustang. I was definitely not a mustang girl. My belief is that if you're going twenty miles per hour, it shouldn't sound like you're hitting sixty. _

_Aside from that, there sat a van with an "X" painted on the side. Way tah beh discreet. To the right of that was a motorcycle and it looked badass, to say the least. _

_I walked up to it and brushed my fingers over the handlebars. Wha's a beauty lahke ya doin' here? _

_The clearing of a throat behind me pulled me out of my thoughts, as I whipped around, fist ready to strike danger. The person grabbed my fist and said in a rough voice, "Don't. Even. Think. About it."_

_I looked up and feared for my life. The man who stood before me was none other than Logan- the Wolverine. "S-sorreh Mr. Logan. Ah didn't know it was y-ya," I stuttered. _

_"'__S fine, just don't let it happen again," he said gruffly. "Shouldn't ya be upstairs with the rest of the students?"_

_I shied away from his intense gaze, but remained where I was. Hey, Ah was here first, who said Ah wanted tah leave? "Why go somewhere ya're not wanted?" I scoffed. _

_At this, he gave a curt laugh and a small smirk. "Ya're not half bad, kid," he said._

_"__And ya're not as scary as most people seem tah think," I shot back, testing waters. "This yours?" I jabbed a finger in the direction of the motorcycle._

_He mhmm-ed his reply and walked past me to one of the work benches to pull out a stool for himself. He sat himself down and gestured behind me to the other stool. Sitting down, I examined the motorcycle real intent-like. Here goes nothin'. "'68 Triumph, raght?"_

_His eyebrows shot up in surprise at this. "Good eye, kid. Know anything 'bout 'em?"_

_"__Far from," I began. "Ah was gonna take an automotive class back… in Mississippi during the new semester. Obviously, that didn't work out."_

_"__Why were you interested in the class?" He asked. He truly seemed to care about what I said. _

_"__Well, Ah'm a young girl. Mah mama," I mentally groaned at myself. She isn't your mother, Rogue. "Irene. Irene scared meh intah thinkin' that if Ah didn't know how tah take care of somethin' lahke changin' a tire, Ah'd end up missin' or dead in a ditch. Guess it jus' always stuck with meh."_

_At this, we both laughed at the silly superstition. Suddenly, he got up and went over to the door. At first, I thought he was just going to leave me, but he came back with a set of keys in his hand. I gave him an odd look and he just turned his cheek the other way, a defiant way of saying "You'll see in a minute." _

_Much to my surprise, he unlocked the X-Van and I heard a faint "pop" noise come from the hood. Did he just open up the hood? _

_Shutting the door, he looked at me and said, "Alright, kid. Show me what you know."_

I was brought out of the fond memory by him holding out a box crappily wrapped in some weird snowflake patterned paper. "Nahce wrappin' job," I snickered.

"Just open your damn present before I change my mind, Stripes," he played along.

The box itself was lean, but lengthy. It was heavy for something small, but not unbearable. I undid the terrible, but thoughtful, wrapping job and peered at the plain white box. I went to open it and found that the top was taped down. "Really Logan?" I asked jokingly. "The wrappin' paper wasn't 'nough? What is this- lahke three layers of tape?" I elatedly complained, trying to break the tape with my nails.

Finally the tape came off, much to Logan's amusement and I basically ripped off the top of the box, like a child. I almost giggled at my antics. Almost. "Oh… wow," I said, amazed at the sheer awesomeness of my present. It was a leather jacket and it looked just amazing! "Damn…"

"Language, Stripes," he laughed.

"Oh please, Logan! Ah'll stop when ya stop."

Turning the jacket over and over again, just to feel the cool leather beneath my fingers, I found the front and pulled it on, none too hastily. When it was fully on, I zipped it up and was surprised to say that it fit perfectly. Bust, waist, sleeves, overall size, everything was just perfect!

Throwing my arms around his middle-lower back, I looked at him with the same naivety that I showed and felt around Irene all those years ago and said, "Ah love it! Thank ya so much."

At this, he gave me a loving smile and returned the embrace, cradling my head and shoulders lightly as if he was afraid of his own strength. "Present's not over. I signed you up to take a class," he said it like I understood perfectly what he was talking about.

Letting go, I asked, "Class?"

He went back to his workbench and pulled out a sheet of paper. I read it and only got through the first two words, which happened to be a part of the title, and gasped in shock. "Motorcycle Safety? Ya mean, Ah-Ah could get…"

"After ya finish the class and decide what ya want, I'll match the price. So, for now, consider that," he gestured to the leather jacket I was still wearing. "As part one of your Christmas present."

I couldn't do anything in the moment, I was so astonished by the lovely news. Nothing could really top that-when your mentor/something-like-a-father says he's going to pay half for your very own motorcycle. Laughing in embarrassment, I said, "Well, this puts what Ah got ya tah shame tahmes ten."

Reaching into my right pants pocket, I pulled out his present and threw it to him. He caught it and examined it, a small laugh erupting from his throat. "I love it, Stripes. You make it?"

"Sure did. Took 'bout a month or so, but it was worth it," I said, hiding my blush.

This year, with him, I decided to try something new and went with cheap and sentimental. In shop class, I made him a little wooden carving of a wolverine, cut a small hole at the top of it and slid a thin piece of suede material to make a "manly necklace" out of it. "Merry Christmas, Logan," I said, lovingly.

"You too, kid, you too," he said, while studying the curves and edges of my mediocre work.

I made to leave, but when I got to the door, he stopped me and said, "Wait, let's talk for a minute."

Oh no. I knew that tone of voice. It was his father voice. As much as I loved it sometimes, I also hated it. Sitting down, he handed me a beer, which surprised me a little. Turning it over in my hands, I read the weird font that said "Angry Orchard" and below that "Hard Apple Cider."

"What'd ya wanna talk 'bout?" I asked shyly. I knew exactly what this was about.

"Gumbo," he said, taking a sip of his drink.

"What 'bout 'im?" I asked, slightly afraid.

"Stripes, I ain't gonna kill him. And let's be honest, he's running out of places to hide and excuses to spew," he spoke.

"Logan, if ya think Ah'm enablin' him…" I began, but he cut me off.

"It's not that, Rogue. Just…" he paused. "Are ya happy? With him?"

At this, I looked him dead in the eye, but my look wasn't fearsome, it was sincere because I understood why he was asking me this. "Yes. Without a doubt," I said with a smile.

"Are ya lying to me?" He asked.

"Logan, Ah wouldn't lie tah ya," I said. By now, both alcoholic beverages were gone, but I still opted to play with the bottle. Who knew playing with a bottle could be so exciting right now? "Ah don' know what ya see in him, but he's a good man an' would do anythin' tah keep his teammates safe… tah keep meh safe. An' Ah him."

He still looked wildly unsure of my words, so I went a little deeper. I scooted the stool I was sitting on closer to his and grabbed his rough hand in my smooth one, without gloves. "Ya're mah family, Logan an' Ah love ya…" I began with. He squeezed my hand reassuringly and I continued. "An'… an' Ah need ya tah accept the choices Ah make- good or bad. Ah'm not gonna force ya tah get along with 'im, because Ah know the both of ya- ya're both too stubborn for ya own good- but could ya at least try?" I finished in a somewhat pleading tone.

He let out a long, defeated-sounding sigh. "For you, I can try."

I smiled big at this and kissed his cheek lightly. "Thanks, Logan." With that, I let go of his hand and got up to leave again. "Just give it some tahme. Try talkin' tah him when ya get back from ya trip to… God-knows-where."

"Speaking of, when ya see him, Stripes. Pass on a message for me?" He asked with a wicked grin plastering his face.

_This can't beh good_. "Yeah?"

"Just let him know that I'm coming for him."

I laughed at his menacing father tone and said, "Ah bet he'll love to hear that. See ya later, Logan!"

"Later, kid," he said.

With that, I left the garage. I was in no hurry, but found myself walking faster with each step because I was excited to get back to the party.

Okay, not the party, but the people.

Maybe not the people, but one person in particular.

One person who I hope decided to come out of his hiding spot.

Dumbass Cajun.

Walking back into the rec room, I saw significantly less people there than when I was here less. The room mostly consisted of the older students as well as the Professor and Mr. McCoy. Everyone else was either asleep or with their families, like Jean and Scott.

I surveyed the room further and found Kitty with Piotr. I couldn't help, but smile at how clumsy she was with him and vice versa. Like now, Kitty was attempting to stretch out her arms, but accidentally whacked him in the face. His eyes widened into surprise and his face scrunched up at the contact, but when she turned to him, red faced and covering her mouth, he just smiled at her and kissed the tip of her nose.

I'd hate to break up the adorable moment, but it had to be done. "Hey guys," I smiled at them. "Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Rogue!" Kitty squealed and wriggled out of Piotr's grip to come and hug me. I lightly hugged her back, but pried her off after a couple of seconds.

"Ya guys see a shady lookin' Cajun roamin' 'round these parts? 'Bout yay-high," I said, roughly measuring out his height with my hand.

"No clue," said the Russian.

Kitty put a little more thought into it and asked, "Where's Logan?"

"Downstairs in the garage."

"Well, he's definitely not downstairs then," she said with a giggle.

"Well duh! Kit, ya present's undah the tree. Go get it, Ah wanna see ya face when ya open it," I said mischievously.

Like a kid, she ran to the tree and began searching through the other presents. At this, I turned to Piotr. "Sorreh, Pete. Ya're kinda hard tah shop for," I said while sitting on the coffee table, opposite of him.

"It is fine. Sadly, I did not know what to get you either, soooo," he said while reaching in his back pocket.

He pulled out a piece of folded paper and held it out to me. I took it and opened it to reveal a drawing of Remy and I playing poker on the floor. It was so simple, but intricate. It only showed us, our cards and the pile of money and poker chips in the middle of us. Looking at it closer, I could see the hand I possessed. It was a flush. "Ah won that game," I said out of pure bliss.

After that game, I remembered going around the hallways, repeating "I kicked the Cajun's ass at his own game" and "I won" over and over again. Oddly, I received many high fives that day.

"I remember," he said. "He was devastated."

I looked at the drawing again and looked at Remy's figure. He was sitting cross-legged and leaning forward slightly. One hand holding the cards, the other being used as a resting place for his chin. In the black and white drawing, he looked to be staring at me intently, a small adoring smile gracing his features. A smile he only shows towards me. "Ya draw beautifully," I decided to go with.

"You two were fun to draw, didn't even notice I was in the room," he said. Leaning closer, "Bad form."

"Bad form, indeed," I agreed.

At this time, Kitty came back and I tucked the picture away in my back pocket for safe keeping. She handed me a small-ish box and I looked at it puzzled. "Open yours first, Rogue!" Kitty suggested happily.

"If ya insist," I said as I tore away the wrapping paper with mini presents on it. _Is that irony Ah see? Weird._

Opening the lean box that, thankfully, wasn't taped down, I looked down at the framed picture that had the words "Best Friends" etched into it in some lovely cursive font and then looked at the picture underneath it. I was shocked to see that it was a shot of us from Evan's video from nearly two years ago. The one where we were dancing. The both of us had our eyes closed, mine outlined in a dark eye shadow and hers clear of any makeup and we both had our hands and arms in the air. "How'd ya find this, Kit?" I asked.

"I saw Evan a week or so ago and asked him where the footage was. He told me that he like, uploaded some of the clips to the main computer, soooo yeah!" She said.

"Thanks, Kit. Ah love it," I voiced my thoughts because they were absolutely true. "Go ahead an' open ya present, now."

_She's gonna hate meh so much. _

When she unwrapped the present, she looked down in disbelief. And then she looked at me in disbelief. Me? I had on a shit-eating grin that the Cheshire cat would be proud of. From his reclined position on the couch, Piotr couldn't see what lay in her lap, but I'm guessing he got curious at her sudden quiet demeanor and peeked over her shoulder. He gave a snort of laughter and then looked at me with amusement. "Cooking for Dummies," Kitty voiced out loud.

And I just couldn't hold back anymore. _Why didn't Ah think of this sooner?_ And her reaction was just priceless, even for her.

But then she started laughing and that's when I got worried. More for myself and poor Piotr than her, though. Between laughs, she managed to say, "Tomorrow… Oh, tomorrow! You're like, gonna get it… bad!"

"That, Ah don' doubt," I said in a sheepish tone.

At this point, a pair of rough hands covered my eyes and a deep southern voice said, "Guess who."

"Ummmm, fingers crossed for Norman Reedus!" I said excitedly.

"Really, chere?" He asked suddenly. "Ya'd choose 'im o'er moi?"

I pretended to think about it for a moment. "Post-apocalyptic world? Eh, maybeh," I winked at him.

"Remy's hurt," he said, faking a sullen expression.

I gave him a chaste kiss on the lips. "Ah'm sorreh, Rems," I said with a little smile.

"C'est gonna take wayyyy mo'e dan dat…" he said suggestively.

"Yeah?" I played along, moving my face closer to his ever so slightly. I knew how to play this game, we've been playing ever since we met each other, except the stakes are higher now.

"Oui," he whispered as our lips just barely brushed. At the last minute, he pulled away and smirked at me. "Maybeh later, non?" He winked.

"Definitely," I said to him in a breathy voice.

By now, Kitty and Piotr had tuned us out and were talking animatedly about anything they could talk about. To say the least, my attention was brought to someone else. Someone who I could never really get off my mind.

"Where were ya all naght? Was startin' tah get worried," I asked him.

"Oh, around. Lookin' fo' yo', 'voidin' Wolvie. Same ole, same ole," he smirked.

_Oh, that smirk. _

"Ya missed lahke half the party, Swamp Rat!" I exclaimed. "Ya know ya're gonna have tah talk tah him soon, raght?"

"Eh," he stated, as if he had a choice.

"Remy, he's not gonna kill ya, Ah promise," I said with a serious tone.

"An' how do ya-"

"Just… trust meh?" I asked.

From there on out, it was back and forth banter, eating Christmas cookies, and laughter. So much laughter. There was so much laughter, I thought my larynx was going to die out!

By the time eleven-thirty rolled around almost every student was upstairs asleep or doing whatever it is teenagers do during winter break. It was weird to think about; this year's my last winter break before high school is over.

And then what would I do?

Go to college? What would I major in?

Stay here and teach? What would I teach?

Travel? Where would I go?

My life has been solely dedicated to finishing high school and getting control over my mutation ever since I discovered it and now I have control and I am going to finish high school and graduate. What then?

Well, I guess I didn't need to think about that right now considering it was Christmas Eve and Sex-On-Two-Legs was saying something.

_Shit, what'd he say?_ "What'd ya say? Sorreh, Ah kinda spaced," I explained, my face turning red with embarrassment.

"It don' matter none, chéri. Jus' glad tah beh wit' yo' 's all," he smiled and kissed my cheek. _Oh damn, that smile. Now or nevah, Rogue. Here goes nothin'…_

"So, Ah almost forgot," I began kind of awkwardly. "Did ya want ya Christmas present tonight or tomorrow?"

"Remy was always an impacient kid… oui!"

I gave a nervous laugh. I had a bad feeling he'd say that. "Alraght," I began. "Gimme five minutes an' then come tah mah room. Ah… uh… forgot tah wrap it, soooo, yeah. Door should be unlocked," I stuttered out and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek.

When I was out of the rec room, I nearly sprinted into my room and shut the door behind me. I went into the adjoined bathroom, because who needs to see what I got in store out in the open?

I was putting on the last touches to my present, the cute little Christmas bow that usually goes on top of a present. Well, the one that suddenly becomes unsticky when you actually want to put it on the present.

Like I was saying, I was putting on the last touches when I heard my door creek open and then the sound of it making a click to signal the closing of the door. "Rogue…?" I heard a voice ask beyond my bathroom door.

_Okay, ya got this! Jus' open the door. _

I put my hand on the knob. On three.

One…

Two…

Two and a half…

With my breath caught in my throat, I opened the door and practically stumbled out.

_Way tah make a grand entrance!_ I mentally rolled my eyes at how clumsy I was being.

When I looked at Remy, though, he looked like he was in pure bliss. Granted, he wasn't smiling, but his eyes grew big with anticipation and want.

But who could blame him? This outfit I was wearing was probably the skimpiest thing I had ever worn in front of someone, much less him. A month ago, I wouldn't have even dared looked at something as racy as this, but things change. People change.

And my changes were for the better. Now, especially now, I began to see that, to feel that. Sure, his gaze was one of wandering and lust, but my body was for his and only his to see.

"Yo' look…" he began to say, his voice growing more ragged than it was when he walked in.

I was wearing a maroon colored corset, black, lacy- very lacy- panties, and thigh-high nylon stockings that kind of made my legs itchy. The corset was definitely something different, something I took a particular liking to, surprisingly enough. Instead of lacing in the back, it laced up in the front, but there was no material beneath that and it was all tied together with a little black bow, located in the middle of my breasts. And the actual Christmas bow? I wrapped some string around it and tied it around my neck in a loose knot, something terribly easy to get off.

"Do- do ya lahke it?" I asked timidly.

"Like it?" he asked a bit excitely. "Mon Dieu chere, yo're gonna give Remy a heart attack!"

I chuckled uncomfortably for a brief second, but he moved into my personal space and wrapped his warm, strong hands around my waist. He began caressing little circles in the small of my back in a comforting manner as he spoke. "Rogue… Ah want tah touch yo' so bad." Just the way he was said it made me ache with anticipation. "Mais… Ah don' wanna push yo' into somet'in' yo're not ready tah do," he said sincerely.

My heart warmed at his comforting words and actions. In a way, I wished that he would've just ravished me the way he knows how to without saying what he did. Thinking more rationally, I realized that he was doing the right thing and shunned myself for thinking otherwise.

"Remy, Ah want ya… so much," I began with. "An' Ah know it's only been a couple weeks, but no one else has ever made meh feel the way Ah feel… about you." I added emphasis on the last word. "Ah'm readeh, Remy."

"How could Ah deny yo', mon chéri?" He smiled fondly down at me. It was times like these, when we were so closely pressed together, that my mind would travel back to the overall proximity and the one-foot height difference. But now, all I could think about was the great warmth he was emitting and the hardened muscles that lay beneath his clothing. "Jus' know, if yo' want moi tah stop, Ah'll stop. Je vous promets, dough it'll beh hard tah resist," he said while kissing my knuckles.

"Je sais, Je compte sur toi," I smiled and bit my bottom lip a little.

At this, he kissed me hard and passionately as his hands remained resting on my lower hips. I could feel the heat of his long fingers in the space where there was no clothing, but I didn't jump away. I had gotten so used to it by now that I almost felt like any other person being touched so sensually and delicately.

The kiss turned into something slow and sweet versus animalistic and passionate and I couldn't deny that I loved both sides of this Cajun charmer. As I basically melted into his embrace, my heartbeat began to pick up. Then, his wet tongue slid over my bottom lip and I couldn't help the jolt of energy that radiated throughout my body when he did this. It was like an electrical fire was ignited inside of me. I parted my mouth enough for him to slide his slick tongue in and I couldn't help the girlish moan that erupted from me as our tongues battled for dominance.

His hands slid up from my hips, to my waist, and slowly upwards, grazing the side of my breasts only briefly before grasping the sides of my neck gently. His right hand ran over something bumpy and crinkly and he broke the kiss to see what it was. "What the…" he began with, but I cut him off.

"Somethin' tah unwrap," I said, hoping he'd get where I was going with it.

"Very clever, chéri," he laughed.

I laughed too at nothing in particular and then we just laughed and enjoyed the presence of each other for a couple minutes. However, that did nothing to cease the growing sexual tension in the room. Every time I'd look at him, he'd either have his eyes closed in enjoyment or they were on my breasts. Any other time, I would've yelled at him, but tonight I put them on display on purpose.

At some point during our fits of laughter, we had ended up sitting, face to face, on the side of my bed. His wandering gazes became more lingering… more longing. Feeling bold, I reached out and grabbed his hand. I then guided it to where my heart lay and kept it there, looking his dead in the eye. _Any move aftah this is his tah make_. I slowly let go of his hand and was only partially curious as to why he wasn't doing anything yet.

By now, I could practically hear my own heart beating in my chest and hoped he wasn't listening too hard. The look in his eyes changed to something I didn't see quite often from him. The look of lust was still there, but it also seemed as if he was pleading- asking permission. I gave him a slight nod and he slowly moved his hand lower until it rested on the lower outline and wiring of the built-in bra. He started to lightly trace them and made his way up my hardened nipple, running his thumb over the thin material of the corset.

To ease the moans sure to come, Remy brought me in for another passionate kiss. My breath hitched in the middle of the kiss as I felt the warmth of his hand penetrate the thin layer of fabric. Needless to say, it felt amazing to finally have his hands on me. My heart started beating faster, so fast that I thought he was able to feel it beating against my chest. All the while, we kissed deep and sensual kisses. By now, I could definitely feel the moisture building in between my legs.

At long last, I finally realized that I wanted to touch him too. Carefully, I slid my hand under his t-shirt and traced his perfect abs. He let out a slight groan and shuddered as my hand explored his upper body. Suddenly, I decided that his shirt needed to come off. Now. I grabbed the hem and pulled it over his head as he happily obliged and halted the current kiss for that split second.

I took a deep breath as I basically leered at his bare chest. His very bare, very muscular chest. Sure, it was dark out, but the moon was bright in the night sky and shown through the curtains. "See somet'in' yo' like, chéri?" Remy asked in a throaty whisper.

"Ohhhhhhhh yes," I whispered right back, my southern accent apparent, even to my own ears. _How did Ah end up with such a god of a man?_

As his hands went back to exploring every inch of my body, he rolled us over on the bed to where I was straddling his lower half. Bringing his hand to the middle of my chest, he slowly and gently unlaced the corset, top to bottom. Starring at him through lidded eyes, I felt as the cloth of the red material began to loosen from my top half.

It was like watching a burning house. The experience was scary, yet alluring and in a way, exciting to watch him watch me so closely.

When the material was loose enough, he slid his hand in slowly, easing his way to the hardened peak. I moaned at the sensation of him stroking my breast with his huge hand, no clothing separating us.

Our kisses became more heated. More hungry. And I knew I wanted more. In our positon on the bed, me straddling him while he groped anything he possibly could, I ground my hips against his as my way of asking for more. I could feel his hard member come to life slightly more with my risky move, but that didn't stop me from doing it again and again. I didn't need eyes to know that he was big. I wanted to wrap my hand around him. Stroke him. Suck him. Anything and everything that my old, closed-off self would be cringing at right now, saying, "Yeah right."

I could feel my lacy panties getting dripping wet with each savoring thought and action. I hoped he would touch me there too. Stroke me. Play with me. I had never wanted someone as bad as I did Remy LeBeau. Grinding my hips down once more to portray the message, he grabbed my pelvis in a strong grip and slowly slid his right hand down to the black underwear I was wearing. He stroked my core where the dripping wet cloth was next to no help. I moaned and rocked my hips forward ever so slightly.

His hand brushed the inside of my thigh, taking this as a sign to continue and that it was okay for him to be touching me so intimately. Moving the wet underwear to the side, he slid his long fingers across my lips. "Mon Dieu, Rogue…" he whispered, voice thick with lust.

Flipping us, I landed with my back to the soft comforter and felt the warmth of his body over mine. Removing the useless piece of clothing and throwing it to God knows where, he began caressing my tender skin, roughly stroking the nub the made me let out a breathy moan in pleasure and twitch with pure anticipation. His fingers then slipped in between my wet lips as he gently rubbed up and down my folds and over my clit once again.

_If his fingers are this good…_

I couldn't even finish my thought as he hit a real sweet spot and I arched my back and moaned, loudly, in pure satisfaction. My breathing became more labored by the second as he pulled me in for a searing and sloppy kiss that I was happy to oblige.

On instinct- what instinct, I'm not sure- I spread my legs as far as I could without bumping his. As if on cue, his finger entered my center. "Oh… oh mah… Remy… ohhhh," I breathed out as I arched my back once again.

His finger slipped in and out of me either agonizingly slow or beautifully fast as his thumb swept over my clit and pressing down, when another finger plunged into my wetness.

I squirmed and moaned lightly as he kissed down my neck, biting down every once in a while and continued to finger me, like he was on a mission. I don't even know what was going through his mind, but I couldn't even think straight at the moment. In my hazy thoughts of nothingness, I didn't notice that he had pushed away the rest of the corset top with his free hand, almost immediately followed by him clamping down on my erect nipple, biting and licking and kissing as if his life depended on it.

I felt an odd, yet familiar sensation building up in my core. I knew I was getting close. "Remy… Ah-Ah'm gonna…!" I couldn't even moan out the last part of the sentence as a third finger entered me and Remy sucked a little harder on my nipple. "Oh… Oh! Oh mah gawd!" I tried as hard as I could to silence my screams of pleasure as my orgasm shook through my entire body. To help, he brought me in for a slow and passionate kiss as my core clenched around his hand. Heat flashed threw me as he stroked me a couple more times as he slowly pulled his fingers out of my wet pussy.

He kissed the valley between my breasts and then rested his head over my heart to let me catch my breath. Coming down from my high, I began to stroke his hair lovingly, weaving the tangled wisps threw my fingers and letting them slip away, only to start again.

I was almost calm enough to fall to the calling of sleep, but Remy did something I didn't think he did. Looking at me, he brought his fingers and seductively licked off all of the juices from his fingers. One by one, painfully and arousingly slowly.

It was the perfect example of the calm before the storm. When I was able to wriggle free from his grasp, I sat up on my knees and looked him dead in the eye. I tried to pull off a serious attitude, but failed when I saw his alluring, beautiful, lust-filled eyes look me over. Grasping his face in mine and said, "Make love tah meh, Remy LeBeau."

"It would be my honor, mon ange," he obliged.

**Goodness gracious! And you wonder why this took me so long to get out?! This is like... OC for me, I've never written anything that dirty before, considering that was the first smut-y thing I've written. Reviews? :) Those would be quite lovely. Tell me which part you guys liked the most! It'll give me a sense of what to do with character development and all! With that, here are your translations and, like always, keep it classy you beautiful people! :)**

**French Translations:**

**Je vous promets- I promise you**

**Je sais. Je compte sur toi- I know. I trust you**

**Mon ange- My angel**


	13. Chapter 13

**Author's Note: And guess who's back?! Has it really only been less than half a week? Well, well, well! I think I have some bragging rights compared to my previous sporadic updates and what not. :D This chapter is kind of a filler chapter, as you might call it? Very short compared to previous chapters, but this one is also rated M. I just takes place several hours from where I left off in chapter twelve. **

**I think it was chapter 11 where someone asked if I knew what Remy got her? I've known. Man, oh man, have I known! I've known what he got her since chapter 7, I think. Originally, this was going to be put in with the last chapter, but I just didn't. Something compelled me not to do it and now I cant remember why!**

**Next chapter is definitely going to ruin the happiness, but it'll only be for a while, no worries there! Nothing terribly tragic. ;) And then chapter 15 is probably going to be another Kitty/Piotr chapter! :D**

**With that, please review and favorite and follow! You know I love you guys for reading and sticking with this story, so return the love or something. :) Today's chapter title is classic Queen with "Don't Stop Me now." When I was writing this, that was the song that was stuck in my head, so why not? **

**Enjoy, you beautiful people! :)**

Chapter 13: Don't Stop Me Now

Rogue POV:

Lying in bed, cuddled up to the freaking human furnace was something else. Considering we were both naked. But damn! Last night- or rather, this morning- was quite the hoot, but very exhausting. I couldn't even decipher as to why I was up right now.

As surprising as it might seem, I wasn't hungry at the moment. It was early, that I could tell, but it still felt too cold to be time to wake up. Looking over, I noticed that my window was opened. _God dammit. Ah realleh need tah remembah tah close the damn thing._ I turned my head to the right and saw that it was around nine-thirty in the morning and then looked back to the man lying in bed with me. I inwardly smiled at the thought of last night.

_Ah lost mah virginity. _

_An' Ah feel on top of a mountain, on top of the whole wahde world!_

It was hard to look at him, though. I was facing away from him and he was holding me in a death grip, it felt. However, it was a welcomed hold. One arm was draped across my middle, his hand firmly placed on my hip while the other was under my neck and shoulders. Something- everything- about this just felt right. My head finally caught up to my heart and there was no doubt in wanting to love this Cajun charmer. I just wasn't quite there yet. After that? I didn't want to fight the growing feeling, but what if it was too soon? What if he didn't feel the same about me?

Questions, questions. So many questions! Life is filled with too many questions. There's just not enough time to answer them all. But, that's the beauty of it, not every question needs an answer and some things are just better unanswered. Well, for now.

Slowly, but surely, as to not wake the sleeping man beside me, I got up in all my naked glory and wrapped a small blanket over my shoulders. He twitched slightly, but remained asleep. I made my way over to the window and shut it quietly with one hand as I watched the steady and heavy falling of snow outside.

The whole mansion grounds were already blanketed in the shiny white sheets. It was beautiful. _Nevah had this down South._

I couldn't help but get giddy as I thought about rolling around in the snow- fully clothed, of course- with Remy, throwing snowballs, making snow angels, sledding, the whole scene! And who could deny a white Christmas? It's every kid's dream to have snow on Christmas morning, it just makes everything so much more magical.

_Magical… Last naght was magical. No doubt in that._

I thought about it. In close detail, of course. Because I don't want to forget a single thing about several hours ago.

xxxxxxxxxx

Several Hours Earlier:

"It would beh mah honor, mon ange," he obliged.

We began kissing again. Raw and hungry, just as before and I found myself aroused for him for the second time that night. Really, just only a couple of hours. Well, maybe one hour.

The kiss alone was everything a girl could ask for and then some. What was to come next could possibly just blow my mind out of proportion, if that makes any sense.

A low growl escaped Remy's lips as he pawed at my hips and forcefully threw me against the covers of the bed. I gasped in surprise at the rough actions he took, but couldn't deny that it was incredibly sexy.

He got up from the bed and took off his pants. I couldn't peel my eyes away from him even if I tried. I watched as he took the waist band of his underwear in his thumbs and pulled them down with steady ease. I gulped at the size of his manhood. "That's supposed tah fit inside meh?" I asked before I could realize what I was saying. "Sorreh… If that's offensive."

He gave a low chuckle and said, "C'est mo'e o' a compliment." He turned around and pulled something out of his pant pocket. I tried looking over his shoulder, but that was almost no use. He turned back around and nothing seemed different. Well, all except the condom he was now wearing. "Ah reckon yo' don' wanna have une baby any tahme soon," he half joked.

I chuckled a little at his attempt for a joke, even though I was ten times more apprehensive now that this was going to happen.

_This is happenin'. This is realleh happenin'!_

"Rogue," he began. "Are yo' sure yo' ready fo' dis?"

"Anna." I said a bit unsurely. "Anna-Marie's mah name."

"Anna Marie… Une beau name fo' une beau fille," he said with a smile. He came to stand in front of me and eventually laid down on his side, facing me. "Anna Marie…" he whispered again.

I could feel his hot breath against my ear and the slight tickle of his goatee rubbing against my cheek. I began to get goose bumps at the simple gesture and a deep shiver ran up my spine. Thank God I wasn't standing up, I probably would've fallen over by now. "Yes." To clarify, "Ah'm readeh." I couldn't help the breathy tone of my voice, I didn't trust my voice to say it any other way.

He positioned himself at my entrance and it felt as if my heart rate tripled. I swear, this man is going to give me a heart attack! I bit my lip, not entirely sure how this new foreign thing was going to feel. Remy looked up to me when he was correctly positioned over me and said, "C'est gonna hurt first tahme 'round…" Well, at least he was being honest.

I felt my lips part and his head slipped into my wet, waiting core. I sighed at the sheer pleasure of the tip of his thick member. However, he was soon coming to a tight barrier. He moved at a slow pace, allowing me to get adjusted as my juices lubricated his intruding member.

Okay, now I was ready for more. I grabbed his ass- full on- and prepared myself for the next push. He leaned down and kissed me hard on the mouth. When he pulled back from the kiss, he made eye contact with me and smiled smugly as he leaned forward, and in one slam, he was in.

I arched my back and a silent scream of pleasure and pain seemed to be at my lips. My eyes practically rolled back in my head as the euphoric pain washed over me. Of course, Remy's lips were on mine once more before I could shout or make a loud noise of some sort. Everything was muffled by Remy's soft, reassuring lips on mine.

He held his position inside of me while my gasps slowed down some. Leaning down, he kissed me once again. But, it wasn't out of hunger. No, this was tenderer, more loving than anything he has shown me before. He started rocking his body, moving back and forth in short, slow movements. I was concentrating on relaxing and with his tender movements, I was soon falling in sync with him and felt every stroke as they got longer and smoother. He slid in and out, making us both slick with my juices.

I groaned, finally feeling accustomed to Remy's shaft inside me. He broke the kiss and looked me straight in the eye. "Yo' are une feisty one, Anna Marie," he said rather seductively, but I could tell his breathing was ragged. He was sweating and good lord, it was a good look on him.

I bit my lip hard and wondered if was going to begin to bleed sometime soon. I squeezed my eyes shut and whispered, "Harder." I was pretty much breathless, but that seemed to be the first thing to come to mind.

He playfully leaned down to my ear and said, "What was dat, chere?" he whispered, tickling my ear with his hot breath. He leaned back and look at me with a cocky grin on his oh-so-perfect, plump lips.

"Harder… please, Remy. Harder!" I said a little louder, amounts of distress in my voice. He smiled deviously at my pleading and I couldn't help but moan as his pace switched to something faster.

I scratched at his back as his hands grasped my hips to keep me steady instead of being buried in the mattress when he came crashing down against my womanhood. I wrapped my legs around his midsection and, oh my god, did that help in so many ways. It felt so good.

With each thrust, he moved a little harder which made the whole experience that much more sensual and intimate. I was shocked at the new feeling, but it was perfect. I felt perfect.

I felt my second orgasm of the night coming on fast. This… was amazing. "Oh god… Ya're so deep!" I moaned out as he thrust again.

As he was working hard to make each thrust, I was lost in my own little world. All I could do was think about him, everything from the sound of his breathing to the feel of him so deep inside my core. I was on cloud nine and could just barely put two and two together.

_Perfect feelin'. _

_Perfect man._ That simple.

Remy was most certainly hitting me in the right spot and I wasn't quite sure how much more I could take before I lost myself. Just the way he moves his body so beautifully and hot-like, it was a true wonder I wasn't cuming every second of the day.

Remy continued to pump in and out of me. Though, he had his eyes closed, he opened them to look at me. His smoldering gaze was hooded with passion and desire. A low groan passed by his mouth as his eyes shut once more. "Ah'm gonna…"

"Meh too," I moaned out. With complete euphoria washing over his features, he smiled a brilliant smile.

He groaned in an animalistic, addictive way as my walls clamped down around his hard member. I came, allowing the orgasm to rock my whole body. I felt Remy's cock throb hard with one last, intense slam as he came. "A-ahhh, oh Remy!" I moaned out, as my body collapsed against the bed.

He held his weight just above me and kissed me with everything he had left. The feeling of him inside me and our chests and stomachs pressed together coupled with his lips on mine was pure heaven. The heated, passion-filled kiss wiped away all thoughts of the outside world. Nothing could break this perfect moment.

He slid out of me and I felt slightly lost at the loss of contact between us. After disposing of the condom, he began to lovingly caress my cheek as I raked my fingers up and down his chest. No words were necessary, both of us afraid to ruin the moment, but it had to be done.

I didn't even realize how tired I was until I saw that it was nearly three in the morning and I let a loud yawn slip through. _Whoops._

"Sleep, chere," he said while giving my cheek a small peck.

I was practically falling asleep just by the alluring sound of his own voice. _So strong, so reassurin'. So… mahne._ I smiled to myself and really thought about it. Best Christmas present ever. "Merry Christmas, Remy," I said, drifting off with each word.

"Merry Christmas Anna," he whispered right back before I fell into a deep sleep.

xxxxxxxxxx

But, now I'm up and I knew there was no going back to bed.

In my hazy reverie, I didn't know that Remy had woken up until I felt his familiar arms encase me to his chest. "Bonjour, mon ange," he said rather seductively. _When didn't he sound lahke that, though?_

I leaned back into him and said, "Mornin', Swamp Rat. We got anythin' planned today?"

"Well, no. S'ppose we don'… pourquoi?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"We're gonna go play outsahde latah. Duh," I said, matter-of-factly.

"Anyt'in' fo' yo'," he said.

"Ah'll keep that in mahnd," I said smugly.

We both laughed and just looked at the falling snow. It was so alluring and enchanting. I never knew snow could be this beautiful. Well, maybe it wasn't just the snow. Something about today just felt right. Most likely because of the Cajun cuddling me this very moment. "Remy got yo' somet'in'," he stated. _Oh great, back tah speakin' in third person._

"Oh?" I asked. I wasn't expecting that.

He left me and went over to the other side of the bed where his jeans lay. I didn't turn around, but I knew him and my room well enough to know the basics of what was happening. At least where he was going.

I could hear his soft footsteps coming closer and closer. He stopped right behind me, but didn't touch me. He then draped something over my head and in front of me. _It was a necklace, that was for sure_. He clasped it together and let it fall over my chest. I picked it up and examined the small, but intricate piece.

For starters, it was beautiful. It was a small, golden heart- maybe a locket- that had emerald and ruby gems surrounding it. The gems were small and there was very few of them, but it made perfect sense. It was simple, yet that's what made it so elegant to the naked eye. And that's why it was the perfect gift.

Well, second perfect.

"Remy, Ah love it," I said, turning around and giving him a hug.

The blanket was still wrapped over my shoulders as he hugged both me and the small blanket closer to his chest. "Ah'm glad yo' do," he said with fondness in his accented voice. "Ah'm glad yo' do," he repeated, quieter.

We stood there for what felt like hours, but was probably only minutes and just enjoyed the moment. It was the perfect moment. For the second, no fourth time that day. And to think, it was barely nine-thirty in the morning.

**Alrighty! Significantly shorter than recent updates, but I think it was worth it. Especially considering that it is only Wednesday! :D Tell me what you guys think and what not because I shall be awaiting your lovely reviews! I don't believe I have any translations for you beautiful people this lovely morning, so goodnight (on my behalf) and joy be with you all! **

**Tis from the Parting Glass... old Scottish folk song. It'll come up towards the end of the story ;) Keep it classy, all! **


	14. Chapter 14

**Author's Note: Goodness gracious, this chapter was a hard one! So much emotion, but I really enjoyed writing this. Especially the end. God, that was fun! ;) As stated before, the happiness and good joy had to end at some point. And what better way to do it than a family reunion? **

**Excuse my absence, if it means anything to you. As you may or may not know, I have put up another story on this lovely website entitled "Life Is Beautiful" for The Book Thief. It'd mean a lot if y'all checked it out. If it's not up your alley, that's all good in the hood, too. :) **

**IMPORTANT: Starting Monday I'll be back in school, well college, but I'm still a high schooler. I reckon I'll have a lot on my plate, no? Updates will most likely be more choppier than usual due to this, so bear with me folks? :)**

**With that, please do your reading thing and don't forget to review/follow/favorite and all that special stuff that makes my heart soar! Today's chapter is by Nickelback. Admittedly, not my favorite, but it just works for this chapter. Enjoy, my lovely readers! :)**

Chapter 14: Savin' Me

Rogue POV:

New Year's Eve:

It was sad to see the holiday coming to a close end. Next week, it would be time to go back to school which was just a darn shame! So many amazing things happened over break. The overall year? Yeah, I couldn't wait for that to be over. This past year was just about as rocky as it could get.

On the one hand, I lost complete control over my mutation, accidentally unleashed Apocalypse, and pushed my "mother" off a cliff. But in the midst of it all, I eventually gained control of the absorption, got closer to those who I love most, took a surprisingly fun trip to New Orleans, lost my virginity, and fell for a Cajun. As if my life couldn't get any more cliché.

By now, most of the mansion's recipients were back from spending time with their families, not that I much cared. More people equals more noise.

Speaking of more people coming back, Logan returned yesterday from Washington State. Apparently, he took his bike halfway and caught a plane. From there on out, it was hitching hiking to trailheads in the Cascades and long car rides to Eastern Washington- Ellensburg, I think it was- for coyote hunting. According to him, it was just as snowy and cold over there as it was here. Except for the supposed tap water. He said that it was way better than New York's or anywhere else he's been.

By now, most of the snow had cleared out or turned to slush at the very least. It was still below freezing temperatures, which just made everything extremely pointless. I mean, if it's going to be freezing cold outside, why not have snow falling to the ground?

But, that didn't matter none. I had all I wanted on this lovely night. I had a warm bed, hot chocolate and my very own Cajun charmer with me. In other words, life was pretty good.

Currently, we sat on his bed, watching Jurassic Park. We were at the part where the two velociraptors are hunting down the children in the kitchen. Involuntarily, I shivered. I had always hated this part. Just the thought of being hunted down by something so menacing was unbearable to think about. "Cold, chéri?" Remy asked from beside me, draping a protective arm across my shoulders as to bring me further into his embrace. As if were hardly possible.

"No," I said defiantly. "This was the epitome of mah childhood trauma," I laughed.

He looked at me, baffled. "Really?! Ah, c'mon dis is not'in'!"

"Compared tah…" I started, waiting for him to finish.

"Je ne sais pas… Da Exorcist?" He responded.

I looked at him quizzically. "There is no way ya fathah let ya watch that as a child!"

"Jean-Luc don' care much what we did in our spare time. His only concern was of The Guild an' gettin' da job done," he said in a solemn tone.

I grabbed his hand in mine just to let him know that I was there for him. As I ran my thumb over the creases of his hand and contemplated what to say next. Choosing my words carefully, I said, "Jean-Luc doesn't deserve a son- adopted or not- as good as yaself."

He sighed, contentedly. "Yo' always know da right t'ing tah say." He looked at me lovingly, his deep-red eyes almost as hypnotizing the first time I saw them. We just stared at each other, long and hard, trying to reveal the secrets of each other's pasts as John Williams' symphony filled the background signaling the end if the movie.

"Shall we go socialize?" Remy asked after a long while.

I checked the time and found that it was nearly time for the customary countdown to the New Year. It was not mandatory that the whole mansion be together for it, but considering that the Professor insisted on having a small get together in the Rec Room, with plentiful amounts of food, it was hard to refuse the kind offer.

"Do we have tah?" I complained, knowing full well, I'd get up any way.

Instead of speaking his response, he flipped over my side of the bed and grabbed ahold of my hips. I was so caught off guard that I barely had time to register him throwing me over his shoulder. I was so baffled by his action, but how could I be? It was totally a Remy move.

"Hey! Let go Swamp Rat," I yelled as I began to playfully thrash within his grasp. "Ah swear tah Gawd, Ah will give ya a wedgie if ya don't let meh down!"

At this, he just spanked me and told me to hush. He actually spanked me! After more failed attempts of trying to escape his firm grasp, I finally gave in and let him carry me, rather uncomfortably out of his room and through the foyer before he let me down. _Finally!_ God, there were so many confused looks from the others. It was painfully embarrassing.

When the Cajun let me down at the bottom of the steps, I lightly punched his arm. Surprising him, I chastely kissed him on the cheek. Letting my lips hover above him warm skin, I whispered as quietly as I could, "Ya will nevah see meh naked again."

At this, he visibly depleted and his face fell in mock sadness. "Ah chere, don' beh like dat!"

With that, I sashayed away from him, purposely swinging my hips a little more than usual to get some type of point across. Halfway across the room I could just barely make out the sound of his accented voice calling after me, saying, "Tease…"

At that, we walked into the Rec Room, me leading the way, him starring at what the good Lord gave me.

"Rogue!" A squeamish voice called from the crowd of people nearby. Kitty, I deducted. Nobody else could carry such volume as she does.

As for the codename, Remy was still the only one who knew of my real name thus far. Don't get me wrong, I planned to tell people, but I wanted to do it during a time when it wouldn't be making a scene. That was the last thing I wanted. Besides, I liked having a secret amongst a household of nosy people. It was just nice to have something to keep to myself and that of which I love.

_Love. Oh Gawd, love…_

It's such a simple, four-lettered word, but it means so much. I know Remy loves me; he doesn't need to say it for it to be evident. But, does he know that he loves me? Maybe this is all just some illusion… What if this is real, though? He's shown me time and again that he loves me, but have I him? It's just something more to discuss tonight, I suppose.

"Hey, Kit," I said, pulling myself out of my inner turmoil.

"Can you believe that this year is, like, FINALLY coming to an end?!" she excitedly exclaimed.

"Yes, an' Ah'm ovahjoyed, tah say the least," I said.

"You don't sound 'overjoyed,'" she pointed out.

"Guess ya'll jus' have tah believe it, then, huh?" I said a bit too smug for my own good.

Kitty was about to retort with something Kitty-like when Bobby announced that we officially had one minute until the New Year.

I looked around at all of the occupants of the mansion from where I stood- near the plentiful tables of food, of course. Jean and Scott sat close together on the couch, while Piotr sat across from them in the arm chair, all of them having a conversation. Something must've been funny because the stoic Russian soon burst out into laughter.

Ororo was enjoying the company of the Professor and Mr. McCoy, giving kind and graceful smiles while holding her beverage. Every now and again, I saw the blue former chemistry teacher raise his hand and close his eyes, as if to recite a quote or famous poem. Something that he alone was well-known for.

Logan, was of course missing in action. But, who could blame him? He likes being around crowds about just as much as I like traveling north for any reason. He was probably in his room or in the garage. I'd have to remember to bother him later.

In the corner, near the pool table, I saw as Tabitha and Amara fist bumped each other after getting a ball into the pocket. By the look on Ray and Roberto's faces, I'd have to guess that they were losing. I mentally chanted that girls rule and boys suck.

I saw Kitty now animatedly talking with Kurt and Jubilee, Kurt being his usual fuzzy self. I felt happy for the blue elf that he was able to find a nice girl such as Amanda and feel comfortable around her, even though she's human. That just makes it all the more better; knowing that someone doesn't hate us.

Sometimes, I'd think back to the memories that I stole from so many of these people and I felt sorry for them. Everyone had their insecurities and hardly any of them were reassured that it was only part of life. Like them, I still had my concerns of whether or not I would lose control. It all came in different forms, though. Kurt was afraid of his handy-dandy wrist watch breaking, Kitty falling through floors like she had so many times before, Ororo's calm demeanor breaking, Logan going feral, Scott losing his visor during a crucial time, Jean Grey's worrisome future.

It all came to the same conclusion. Fear. Everyone was scared of something, and we had teachers like the Professor and Ororo to help ease their minds. But, was it really enough? How could two people, who have other jobs to do, do that by themselves? Especially not being certified!

"C'mon guys, gather around!" Screamed a cheerful Bobby as we were down to the last twenty seconds of the year. Surely enough, I was pulled into the whole hullabaloo by Kitty. I finally found Remy standing next to his Russian companion and figured that that was where we were headed.

The sexy Cajun smirked at me and I couldn't help the shiver that ran up my spine. It was as if every time I was around him, he kept me on my toes. He has said again and again that I'm somewhat of an open book, even though I catch him off-guard with my actions sometimes. I may be an open book, but he is a complete enigma to me. I can never seem to predict what his next action would be. It must be a thief thing, I concluded.

"Where yo' been hidin', chéri?" He asked.

Smirking at him, "Around."

As the Russian and the cat stood side by side, holding each other as if life itself depended on it, I stood in front of Remy as he lazily draped his arms around my middle section. Content, I leaned back into his chest and smiled. It was too hard to contain. "Why're yo' smilin' so bright-like?" He asked, bemused at my carefree expression.

Gesturing at the affectionate position we were in, I said, "Good way tah end the year," I laughed.

I leaned back even further and he laid his chin on the crook of my neck, leaving a chaste kiss on my jawline before counting down with everyone else in the room. "Five…"

"Four…"

"Three…"

"Two…"

At "one," my head was turned by one of Remy's hands as his lips crashed down on mine for a searing kiss. As everyone cheered "Happy New Year," I was focused on the fact that this kiss would be wildly frowned upon if Logan was around and was highly inappropriate, considering all the young children around.

I slowly pulled back and he did the same. "Wow…" I ever so eloquently said. Much like the other stolen kisses we've shared, it was as if the world stopped spinning. Nobody else matter. It was just him and I in this little world we created. Together.

And that was when I figured for sure that I loved Remy Etienne LeBeau. And I was damn well set on telling him so. But, not here. _Gawd, anywhere but here!_

"Do ya wanna take a walk?" I said, a bit more composed now.

"Lead da way, Anna," he whispered so no one else would hear the secret title I kept so dear to my heart.

Instead of staying inside the stuffy mansion, we decided to take a walk to the gazebo. I grabbed a small, wool cardigan, but he didn't take anything of the sort. I would've grabbed something heavier, but knew that he would keep me warm.

On our way to my seemingly favorite spot, we made small talk to pass the time as to not have an unwanted tension between us as an owl could be heard in the distance, almost soothingly singing it's repeating chant. "So, have any New Year's resolutions?" I casually asked.

"Get lots of exercise," he winked at me as I turned around fully with a flabbergasted look. "Que?" He asked.

"Ya can beh such a…" I thought of a word to use. Going with German, "Saumensch."

I proudly smiled at his confused face. Even with just the moon as our light source, I could perfectly make out the furrowed eye brows and slightly agape mouth. "What does… Is dat German?"

"Ja," I simply stated. I'm so happy Kurt took it upon himself to teach me bits and pieces of his native language.

"Mais qu'est ce? Yo' jus' bat dose gorgeous lashes at anyone an' dey give yo' une free language lesson?" He asked.

In French, "Pourquoi des cours! Worked on ya." I smiled triumphantly at his baffled expression.

"Clever girl," he said, referring to the Jurassic Park movie we had watched only a mere hour or so ago. I laughed at the thought of him comparing me to a velociraptor. "What 'bout yo', Miss Anna Marie? Any resolutions dis year?"

Given some thought, I said, "Aftah graduatin', Ah wanna talk tah the Professor 'bout counselin' an' goin' intah psychology tah help the younger ones cope with their abilities. Ah jus' wanna help people," I stated firmly.

"Why counselin'?" Remy asked, genuinely curious.

"Tah give 'em moral support. 'S somethin' Ah didn't have much in lahfe, 'specially when the absorption manifested… 'Fore that, even," I said a bit absentmindedly. Sobering up, "Somebodeh needs tah beh there for 'em an' that's who Ah wanna beh," I said more boldly. And I couldn't be more true to my word. "That, an' Ah need tah take a trip… back tah Mississippi."

I've thought it over more times than I can count, but ultimately decided that it was time to tie up loose ends. Especially with Irene and Cody. On the one hand, I felt complete anger and uncertainty towards Irene, but felt utter remorse at the thought of poor Cody and how I couldn't tell him sorry for what I'd done to him.

"Yo' hometown?" He asked all too knowingly.

I nodded, solemnly as we sat on the bench in the gazebo. After all, it was still a tender subject. I really didn't want to do it. I'd like to just run from my past mistakes and problems, but I couldn't. Life wasn't that easy and I would never be able to move on without doing it.

" C'est somet'in' yo' gotta do," he said, while soothingly caressing my cheek. "Some t'ings… yo' jus' can' hide from."

_Ah couldn't agree more. _

Curtly laughing, I said, "Ya an' Ah; we could write a book 'bout it."

"Been down da same roads," he finished. "'Cause we're perfect fo' each ot'er. We belong toget'er."

I distinctly remember that not being said in the bayou. _New year, new memories, Ah guess._

It was a few more minutes before any of us said another word. _Now or nevah_, I kept chiding myself. _Jus' three words. Maybeh, four dependin' on how Ah phrase this…_

"Remy," one word down. "Ah…Ah think that Ah-"

I was cut short when I heard the cocking of a gun. At that, we both turned to the noise. I don't know about Remy, but I was surprised. Outraged beyond belief that this crazy woman was holding a gun to one of us, but surprised nevertheless.

"Mystique. WHAT are ya doin' here?" I asked, none to graciously.

From the corner of my eye, I could see Remy's hand slowly make its way towards either his playing cards or bo-staff as I mentally prepared myself to turn on my mutation-to flip the mental light switch on.

"A mother can't visit her own daughter on such a lovely night?" She asked condescendingly.

"A mothah doesn't abandon her child an' then lie tah them latah in lahfe," I vehemently spat back. "If only Kurt could see our 'mother-dearest' pointin' a gun at her only daughter."

"You leave him out of this! He was always meant to become an X-Man. You? Me? We were to be reunited as mother and daughter and have the luxurious life that I wanted for us," she said, lowering her gun slightly.

"The life ya wanted for us… That's grand. Listen here, Mystique. Ah make my own decisions. Not ya, not anybodeh else!" I said, my anger slightly getting the best of me.

"Rogue…" she sullenly began. She didn't even dare say my real name. Pathetic. "Why do you hate me so much? Everything I have done has been for you- for us."

I actually couldn't believe this woman. She has some nerve! One, trespassing on my home. Two, making these silly declarations. And three, being so damn stupid. Before I could speak another word, my male companion spoke on my behalf. "How dense can yo' pos'bly beh?" Couldn't have said it better myself, I smiled inwardly.

"Excuse me, Cajun?"

"Yo' damn well heard moi!" he nearly screamed in outrage, standing to his full height as the she devil rose her gun to him. On instinct, I stood too, ready for whatever might come next. "Yo' have abandoned, used, lied to an' abused her! Yo' don' deserve her love," he practically spat.

In my mind, all I could think about was cheering on Remy, even though I knew perfectly well that it would be wildly inappropriate to do so. I wasn't even mad that he was defending my honor in a typical guy way! This was just all too fascinating.

"How did ya find us, Mystique?" I questioned. Best to tone it down before something bad happens.

She laughed humorlessly. "May the owl share her keen sight and intuition to help you see things that are hidden, my dear."

"The blasted owl…" I scolded myself for not catching it earlier.

"Always knew yo' pushed 'er off une cliff fo' good reason…" Remy said, clearly talking to me, but loud enough for her to clearly hear it.

"I have had enough of you, LeBeau!" The blue woman yelled, outraged. I could hear her pull the trigger of her handgun and was angry that the safety wasn't on. _Didn't anyone evah teach this crazy ass 'bout gun safety an' what not?_

As she pulled the trigger, my body moved on instinct. Everything felt like it was going in slow motion as I tapped into my inner strength and pushed Remy as forcefully as I could. I stumbled into the spot of where he once was standing and felt the heated metal of the bullet enter through my right shoulder and clavicle.

I could feel the soft, but tough muscle tissue tear apart and felt the bone underneath crack under the pressure. Literally. Oddly, it didn't hurt, not yet at least. I fell to the ground from the sharp impact and trajectory of the bullet, landing on the side that had been wounded. At this, I let out an ear-splitting scream, now able to feel the full burn of the metallic object and the immense pain erupting anywhere from my collar bone to my chest and my shoulder blade.

I could feel and smell the warm liquid beginning to seep out of my injury, knowing that it was my own blood. Considering I could smell it at full capacity, I assumed there was a lot. I also figured that it wouldn't take long until I passed out.

I could only focus on the pain, God, there was so much pain. It was just too much to hold in as I began to cry over my injury. I didn't dare open my eyes as the tears stung my eyes and ran down my face like lava. I could feel myself being picked up and a whole new pain erupted in the arm. It felt enflamed, even though it wasn't and I screamed out once again, wanting to berate myself for acting so weak. Some of the pain began to disappear, but I didn't dare open my eyes. If crimson had a smell, that would be the pungent odor that was invading my nose.

However, my senses began to dull, much like my body. I could feel myself growing more limp as I heard a frenzy of voices and gasps and a distinct accented voice chanting, "Stay awake, stay awake, Mon Dieu… s'il vous plaît rester éveillé!"

I could feel myself slipping, even though I tried to listen to the alluring voice. "Je t'aime, Anna Marie, Je t'aime! S'il vous plaît… no, no, no…"

I had heard all I needed to hear before I fell into a state of oblivion rather calmly, even though there was probably a bullet still lodged within me. Content was a bit of an overstatement. More like… at peace. I was at peace.

**Told you guys the happiness would be ruined. :) I have much in store for you lovely beings. Keep in mind, next chapter is a Kitty/Piotr one told through Kitty's perspective. **

**With that, here are your translations and remember to keep it classy, meine Freunde! (Tis German) AND don't forget to leave reviews! :)**

**French Translations:**

**Mais qu'est ce- So what is it**

**Pourquoi des cours- Why of course**

**S'il vous plait rester éveillé- Please stay awake**

**Je t'aime- I love you (But you guys probably already knew that)**

**German Translations:**

**Saumensch- Pig**

**Ja- Yes**


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